An eruption of music and artificial UV rays flare brightly when monica opens. Trace Lysette is laying in a tanning bed listening to New Order's "Bizarre Love" while wearing beady safety glasses. The rest of the movie, a tale of alienation and acceptance centred on Lysette's magnificent performance as the titular character, begins with this extreme close-up, which is both startling and immediately personal. Despite Monica's sparse storyline, one family's perspective allows for a moving discussion of trans identity and loneliness.

Even though there are few signs, it is obvious that monica is cut off from both her family and another important connection in her life. She leaves voicemails for Jimmy, who has requested that she not call. Naturally, monica calls nevertheless, yelling into space before deciding to return to the unknown little town where she was raised. As viewers get to know Laura, portrayed by Emily Browning, Leticia, played by Adriana Barraza, the family's carer, and Monica's mother Eugenia and brother Paul, played by Patricia Clarkson and Joshua Close, respectively, the connections start to come into focus.

It's unclear whether the fact that monica is trans or the brain tumour Eugenia is dealing with is the reason her mother doesn't recognise her. What Eugenia doesn't recall, though, is that before she reached 18, her carer abandoned her and she was forced to fend for herself in the world. However, other from a few brief sequences, none of this is explored in depth or given more context than is strictly required. This would be a problem in a lesser movie, but in Monica, the withholding helps the viewer understand how the main character is experiencing.

Pallaoro's deliberate withholding of information is the only thing keeping monica back. Although deliberate and occasionally advantageous, it frequently leads to frustration rather than insight. The withholding emphasises the formal experiments being conducted here, but I wish monica provided a little bit more context. Thankfully, Lysette and company make up for the plot's shortcomings. Particularly Clarkson is superb as Eugenia, and the few minutes Close and Lysette have together as separated siblings are also extraordinarily moving.
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movie review

S Venkateshwari

14/05/2023 08:50 AM