So, what is this mysterious film “To Leslie” that garnered English lead actor Andrea Riseborough a controversial, surprise Best Actress Academy Award nomination last week, igniting a storm of Twitter disapproval because Riseborough theoretically took a spot that would have gone to Danielle Deadwyler (“Till”) or Viola Davis (“The Woman King”).
When “To Leslie” was in theaters last October it made only $27,322 at the box office, and while it has been available on Prime Video and other rental platforms, not many people have been talking about it to my knowledge until the surprise announcement. Apparently, its success with the Actors Guild can be attributed to a grassroots campaign led by the likes of Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Aniston, Frances Fisher, Edward Norton, Kate Winslet, Jane Fonda, fellow nominee Cate Blanchett and others, using social media platforms to get fellow Acting Branch members to see the film and vote for the not well-known-to-the-public Riseborough, whose work in such films as “Made in Dagenham” (2010), “The Death of Stalin” (2017) and “Possessor” (2020) has earned her a critical following.
In “To Leslie,” Riseborough, a truly chameleon-esque actor and a previous BAFTA nominee, plays the title role, a single mother from West Texas who wins a lottery and goes on a depraved, yearslong bender, losing the money and her house and abandoning her young son in the process.
When we meet Leslie, she has hit rock bottom to the tune of Dolly Parton and Sia’s “Here I Am,” one of the first of many country songs, many of them Willie Nelson tunes, on the film’s soundtrack. This broken-down, lost soul character is an actor’s favorite for many reasons. First and foremost is that the role requires behavioral extremes. Six years after winning the lottery, Leslie gets thrown out of her shabby motel room, picks up some guys at a bar and ends up with the swollen eye at a bus stop. In filthy clothes, she shows up at her 20-year-old son’s place, pretending to be making a visit. Left alone, she searches her son’s room, finds some cash and buys a bottle that she starts guzzling before leaving the liquor store. Thrown out by her son (a very good Owen Teague), Leslie ends up with old family friends Nancy (Academy Award-winner Allison Janney) and Dutch (Stephen Root). But, after making a scene at her hometown’s bar, where she is all too well known, Leslie and her signature pink suitcase are once again asked to leave. She gets a small chance at redemption when she finds herself asked by a kind man named Sweeney (Marc Maron) to work as a maid at the motel he manages.
Like many films of this kind, “To Leslie” allows its protagonist to hit the bottom more than once, and Riseborough is terrific, totally believable and even a bit relentless in the role of the remorseless drunk, who cannot help herself and is a constant source of pain and misery for everyone in her life.
Director Michael Morris is known for such highly regarded TV series as “House of Cards,” “Animal Kingdom,” “13 Reasons Why” and “Better Call Saul.” His work in “To Leslie” is solid. Writer Ryan Binaco’s gritty screenplay avoids most of the cliches and will remind some of the work of Taylor Sheridan (“Hell or High Water,” “Yellowstone”). Can Riseborough go all the way? Probably not, since Blanchett has been unbeatable, and if Blanchett doesn’t win, Michelle Yeoh of “Everything Everywhere All at Once” is next in line. Still, “To Leslie” came out of nowhere, snagged a major Oscar nomination and has become the film to see.
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'TO LESLIE'
Grade: B+
Rated: R (for language throughout and some drug use)
Running time: 1:59
How to watch: Available to rent or purchase on digital platforms
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