Hard Truths | Film Review

 

Pansy (Marianne Jean-Baptiste) is an angry, depressed woman who isolates herself by lashing out at those around her. But as she delves deeper into her feelings with the help of her sister Chantelle (Michele Austin), she is forced to confront some difficult things she's spent her life burying.

I was really looking forward to seeing this one, mostly because of the trailer, which was really well made. But I'm also a fan of Marianne Jean-Baptiste so it probably would have been on my radar regardless.

I really liked this movie.

The first thing that needs to be mentioned are the performances. Every person in the film did an amazing job supporting Jean-Baptiste in telling this story, and she herself did an amazing job playing Pansy, an incredibly complex, powerful character.

I loved the relationship between Pansy and Chantelle, and I really would have liked to see more of it.

But the best thing about the film for me is how authentic it is, especially the dialogue in the first half. Not only is it unapologetically British, and unapologetically Black British, but it's so specifically Caribbean British, and I absolutely loved that. The interactions, the language used, everything felt so real. I have no idea if the dialogue was mostly written or improvised, but it's definitely authentic.

Looking back on the film as a whole, it really feels like two different films.

The first is a dark comedy about a woman, angry at the world for reasons unknown, that's quite entertaining and quite funny. 

The second becomes a hard-hitting drama about loneliness and depression.

And while the first is the most interesting film, the second is much more powerful. I found myself getting unexpectedly emotional when we find out more about Pansy and why she feels the way she does.

That being said, the film does lose its way as we ramp up to the ending. It seems like there are only a few ways it can end and it chooses to do none of those and instead just doesn't really give us any ending. And I get that this might have been done to show the nature of depression and the fact that, to be authentic, there isn't always a real 'ending'. But I can see how audiences might feel a bit disappointed or short-changed about the ending.

Overall, I can understand why this film might not work for some people, but it really worked for me. It's definitely worth a first watch, even if it's not one you want to watch again.

7.5/10