Tully, with a twist…
Genre: Comedy/Drama
Director: Jason Reitman
Cast: Charlize Theron, Mackenzie Davis, Ron Livingston, Mark Duplass
Rated: M (some nudity and sexual content)
Runtime: 1 hour, 35 minutes
So, Tully. Tully is… difficult.
Charlize Theron helming as protagonist and producer, director Jason Reitman, and writer/producer Diablo Cody (of Juno fame) reunite to tell us the tale of Marlo. A woman, a wife, and mother of two, in her last trimester with her third child. Already, concern is swirling over how Marlo’s going to handle two kids, Sarah and Jonah, the latter requiring special attention, and a newborn baby. At the core of the story is the vague backstory of Marlo’s previous experience with Postpartum Depression after the birth of her son. The spotlight on her past is only ever cast by her husband Drew, played by Livingston and Marlo’s brother. Her wealthy, dorky and well-intentioned brother Craig played by Duplass, decides to gift his sister a “Night Nanny”.
While we’re ill-at-ease alongside this family’s journey, from her sons school struggling to cope with him to the arrival of baby Emmy, and the strained and bedraggled days and nights that follow, it’s Tully’s arrival that really ratchets it up a notch. At first reluctant to accept her brother’s offer, Marlo eventually yields. This the result of a brutal montage of sleepless night, after sleepless night, after sleepless night, monotonous school drop offs and ungrateful dinners cooked, etc. Marlo’s breaking point hits and we are absolutely terrified for her and by her, and for her kids. While everything on the surface seems to return to normal, Marlo decides to yield and accept Craig’s gift and thus invites Tully into her life.
Tully arrives in the late hours, while the rest of the house is at rest. Marlo, who reluctantly hands over baby Emmy, cautiously leaves Tully to do her job. Marlo at first finds it weird to have this stranger in the house, and then for this stranger to, do not cringe, hand-on-assist with breastfeeding Emmy during the night. Tully, is wonderfully played by Mackenzie Davis who pulls off the witty, intelligent, free spirit of a woman in her 20s. A chaotic but creative mind, capable of spouting random and sometimes esoteric pieces from English literature, draws Marlo in. Soon, we see a bond of friendship develop Tully and Marlo, cohesion in their shared experiences and not at all dulled by the differences in age. Marlo is a different person, elated and manic, she’s liberated and glowing. She more her old self than she has ever been. She’s sleeping more, eating better, exercising and even laughing. Confiding in one another, we see Tully become an integral part of the household from baking for the kids school lunches to cleaning the house top to bottom. All the gaps in the household and family’s life seem filled. But one night, the lines of impropriety are crossed and it sets Drew on edge. This twist should be one you see coming but like all good twists, you have to wait until the very catastrophic end to see it play out in full.
This is not an easy film to enjoy. Where Juno gave us quirky, pardon, young and honest humour, Tully delivers some savage honesty with the same snappery but not quite ringing the same bell. These moments are a lovely respite from the drama but are few and far between. Easy to miss, some of them you’re not even sure you should be laughing at. Of course, most of these lines are delivered by Tully or by Marlo’s daughter Sarah, played by Lia Frankland, another relative parallel that later collides. And of course those naked moments of dark humour from Marlo herself. Where Tully delivers, “I’m like Saudi Arabia, I have an energy surplus.” with great wit, we’re balanced with Sarah’s non-filter honesty, “Mom, what’s wrong with your body?!” and “Why is the house so clean?!”.
Marlo’s humour is a significant portion of the dark core of this dramedy and at first it surprises you. Very much under the physical, mental and emotional weight of her current pregnancy and expanding family, and waistline, she easily quips, “Got my own personal hug-buffer now”, when avoiding physical contact to “I want to kill myself… Just joking! Mommy’s joking!”. But it really cracks and snaps in moments where Marlo lifts the veil and rages. When diplomatically told she needs to put Jonah into a special needs school by a school administration who has stressed Jonah’s “quirkiness” ad nauseum, Mama Marlo quickly extorts, “Quirky! Quirky?! Do I have a child or a ukulele!?!”.
Theron and Davis are very much beyond reproach in this film, as are many of its other elements. Theron always fully commits to physically transformations for her roles, and this pushed her to a new limit. Gaining 22 kilograms on her lithe frame, Theron attested that her diet pushed her mentally and she experienced Depression for the first time, which is very much reflected in the film. The cinematography guarantees to make you feel like you’re intruding on some very private moments, you’ll see a fair bit of lactating in this film, which is one reason it packs a punch, a good contrast to the rock-indie music.
Where the film doesn’t hit its target is, well… everywhere. It will rightfully punch you in the gut and then ask for a lollipop. Thematically, this film appears to fully honour and reflect the beleaguering strain of motherhood, while neglecting much of the privilege in the characters, Drew especially who stereotypically bows to the clueless & privileged husband trope. It draws an empty contrast between the families of Marlo and her brother Craig, with callous conversation by Craig’s wife Elise, who “could barely get to the gym” after her pregnancies, at least she had access to one. And Marlo’s niece whose talent for an upcoming school show is “Pilates!” and their small yappy dog named “Prosecco”. Yes, Prosecco.
While the film is ultimately a tale of mental illness, not just Marlo’s but also her son Jonah’s, the filmmakers are incapable of addressing it head on, not even naming it, or even speaking of treatments. One thread that felt true, from many conversations I’ve had with numerous expecting mothers, is the invasive and unsolicited advice from strangers. Seriously, the heavily pregnant lady at the cafe does not need you to tell her the decaf she’s ordered has trace amounts of caffeine that could harm the baby! Leave her be! Right up there with that loss of identity women seem to experience once they become child incubators, is the right to any bodily autonomy… no, you may not touch the belly that has the growing unborn child in it, no matter how much it’s protruding!
As I’m not a mother, I can only speak to this film so much. But much like Juno, where the titular character struggles with the decision to have an abortion, the film never really lands on either side of the issue, but rather straddling it’s core and leaving the films vacant and unrealised.
Tully is out now, in selected theatres.
Grade: 7/10
Must watch: Only if you’re jonesing for some Dramedy but look out for the twist in the bend.
Worth a cinema watch: No, don’t rush to see this.
By Lena Davies
10th May 2018