Philomena: Beauty and Humor in Loss

Regret can be one of the more devastating obstacles to human happiness, slowly and subversively consuming an individual, feeding on his or her life and ultimately desiccating what remains.  With Philomena, director Stephen Frears (Dangerous Liaisons, The Queen) has provided a stunning story of a woman faced with fifty years without her son somehow possessing the strength to pursue him and change her life.

Premise: After a fifty year silence, a woman searches for her son taken from her at a young age. Result: Based on a true story, a film that is able to see the beauty in tragedy and provides for an enjoyable and heartfelt experience.

Written by Steve Coogan and Jeff Pope and based on the true account published by Martin Sixsmith (The Lost Child of Philomena Lee), Philomena begins with the maudlin, graying lives of Philomena (Judi Dench) and Martin Sixsmith (Steve Coogan) as both have fallen into decline.  Sixsmith has been the victim of his own success, a former TV journalist turned government spin-doctor, he now resides on the darker side of unemployment.

Philomena, on her end, just celebrated the 50^th birthday of a young son she lost decades earlier. She confides in daughter Jane (Anna Maxwell Martin) that she birthed him out of wedlock and under the cruel treatment of nuns, was forced to give him up. By coincidence, Jane meets Martin at a small gathering and asks him to pursue her story.

It so happens that at the same party, editor Sally Mitchell (Michelle Fairley) meets Sixsmith and offers him a book deal if he can get her the right story. Fortunately, Coogan and Pope have the good fortune of working with a ‘true account”, otherwise the coincidence may have bogged down the credibility of the tale itself.

And so, with some humor and significant reluctance, Sixsmith meets Philomena who recounts her gloomy tale of cruelty, shame, and the eventual loss of her son Anthony.  It is a miserable tale by any stretch, recounted through flashbacks with a young Philomena (Sophie Kennedy Clark) firmly entrenched in the grand horror of such a tragedy.

The tale turns into an all-out investigation across the pond in America, where the two begin to bond over the journey, as the cynical Sixsmith eventually sees true love and beauty, even at the hands of a “human interest story.” There is splendor and sadness as Philomena comes to terms with the terrible sin committed against her; at several points in the story, it will come close to all too much for audiences.

But the film is somehow able to keep this injustice and personal horror firmly entrenched in a cocoon of whimsy; on the one hand this keeps the film light enough to allow its true messages of love and forgiveness to shine on.  On the other hand, the film also wanders dangerously close to Disney-fying a tragedy of epic proportions.

The acting in the film is wonderful throughout.  Dench, as usual, is remarkable but what may be so impressive is just how surprisingly charming she is as a kind woman delighting in simple pleasures and the beauty of the world around her even as she faces this nightmare. She is stunning in each scene, demonstrating an uncanny range of emotion and unlike in typical Dench roles, her power comes not from a force of will and wit, but from a place of vulnerability and gentleness that will have audiences rising to her defense.

Amidst this veteran turn from Dench, Coogan is also quite spectacular.  He is painfully sarcastic, and yet his charm and humor shine through with every word.  He is likeable at every turn and helps to elevate this movie from moment one, providing the sophistication the contents of this film require.

In the end, Philomena is as enjoyable as it is painful.  The tale is deeply saddening and even rage-inducing; yet the manner in which it is delivered speaks not of the wrongs this woman is forced to endure, but of her transcendence.  There is true beauty in forgiveness, even if it something most audiences could not do themselves.

Rating: 7- A refreshing Champagne that a cute bartender comp’d you!