Review of Philomena (2013) by Blake P — 19 Jul 2014

"'Human interest story' is a euphemism for stories about weak-minded, vulnerable, ignorant people, to fill in newspapers read by vulnerable, weak-minded, ignorant people." Martin Sixsmith (Steve Coogan) declares to Jane Anna (Anna Maxwell Martin). Sixsmith is a cynical, nearly depressed journalist who is still in shambles after recently been fired by the BBC; Jane, who knows of his background, asks him for a favor: to write a story about her mother, Philomena Lee (Judi Dench), who has a story that seems to be lifted straight out of a 1940s melodrama. This story, though, isn't your regular human interest story - it's a story that acts as an eye-opener. As it turns out, abbeys were not as quaint as Maria von Trapp made them out to be.

In her teens, Lee became pregnant out of wedlock, an act severely frowned upon by her Catholic religion. She was sent to an abbey to give birth, and for years she was forced to work as a near-slave, only able to see her son for an hour a day. There is no happy ending, however, because this particular abbey was renowned in its day for being a sort of orphanage - even movie star Jane Russell was a customer. So just after three years, Lee's baby is given away, with no goodbye, no contact, no further investigation.

It has been fifty years since her son's birth, yet all her life, Lee has kept it a secret from her family. But once she finally reveals the truth to her daughter, who is appalled, it isn't a deed that is going to be left untouched, which is why Jane approaches the skeptical Sixsmith in the first place.

As the movie poster for the film sees Judi Dench with an adorable grin on her face next to a deadpan Steve Coogan, we know that Sixsmith will eventually give in and help his subject- but the results are so shocking that we can only remember in agony that everything on display is based on a true story.

Complete with nuns straight out of hell, a sweet old lady to root for, successful attempts at comedy, and a story that is equally entertaining and believably realistic, Philomena is a quiet tour-de-force that keeps us glued and keeps us surprised. Directed with an elastic ability to be either warm or harsh by the ever reliable Stephen Frears, and written with wry wit and utter humanism by Coogan and Jeff Pope, the film in store simply proves that you cannot judge a something by its cover.

With vague knowledge and a small description of the film on its side, Philomena sounds as though it could make clunky attempts to be heartwarming, in the same vein as Stand and Deliver, or any TV-movie that slides through the premises. Yet, it ends up being anything but, rather telling the story of a woman who we can hardly believe can live with such kindness, such devoutness to the Catholic religion, despite the cruelty it showed her.

Philomena Lee is a remarkable woman, brought to life by the equally remarkable Judi Dench; we can only help but wonder how many other woman have a story like Lee's, but never found a Martin Sixsmith to shed light onto it. It's a must-see that needs to be experienced, not simply told. It is rooted by Coogan, breathed through by Dench. It is a human-interest story that will be enjoyed by weak-minded, vulnerable, ignorant people, but it also will be enjoyed by their counterparts, because, let's face it: you simply cannot resist Philomena Lee.