It's Gonna Be May December

May December [2023]

Film

Out now on Netflix is Todd Haynes' newest feature film, May December. His most notable films in the past recent years are his legal thriller starring Mark Ruffalo, Dark Waters, and his most critically acclaimed film, the 2015 feature Carol.

May December certainly has more in common with Carol, in the sense that it is artistically ambiguous, yet thematically obvious. I'm not using the word obvious to diminish any part of the film however. In fact, what makes May December so good is the utilization of up front symbolism conveyed through abstract means such as the score and subtleties of the actors.

So what the hell does any of that mean? Well, let's start at the beginning.

Spoilers aplenty

May December follows a trifecta of characters, as their stories intertwine and convolute each other's lives. Gracie (Julianne Moore) and Joe (Charles Melton) are a happily married couple living in Savannah with their twin children Mary (Elizabeth Yu) and Charlie (Gabriel Chung) who are about to graduate high school and head off to college. Where the couple's eldest child, Honor (Piper Curda), has already been studying for some years now. Elizabeth (Natalie Portman), is an actress who arrives at Gracie and Joe's residence with the task of studying Gracie, in order to better portray her in an upcoming film. This film focuses on the highly publicized story of how Gracie and Joe came to be together, when Gracie was Joe's teacher, and Joe was only thirteen years old. We then come to find out that Honor was born in prison, where Gracie was serving a sentence, and when she was released she came to marry Joe.

The way Haynes conveys these stories is what makes the film that much more impactful. Where it could rest as a simple piece on Hollywood's exploitation of peoples' lives and/or the power imbalance in relationships akin to predation, Haynes pushes the envelope. Creating an outrageously melodramatic package that ties all of these interwoven themes together. The overtly melodramatic score, deep piano chords and fluttering keys transform a scene into what one would expect to be an episode of a daytime soap opera. But this heightened dramatic flare serves as a reflection of the subject matter. A Hollywood actress coming in, working to mimic the behavior and tendencies of Gracie aka going full method, fuels predictions of just how pretentious this project of Elizabeth's might be. Everything has to be over the top dramatic. Our first real glimpse of this is when Elizabeth visits the pet store where Gracie and Joe were caught sleeping together in the stock room. The very same room that Elizabeth ventures to, where she recreates the affair by pretending to have sex in the corner.

May December [2023]

Combining this with a monologue Elizabeth has while talking to Mary's theater class on the blurred reality in acting in sex scenes we're left to wonder what exactly Elizabeth is up to. At first, it would appear as a simple checkbox on a to-do list for work. An innocent extra-studious step so she can put her best foot forward in her ole 9-5 grind. But, this is something much more sinister. An extreme detachment from reality.

The same goes for Gracie, who might be the most removed from the real world. A party at Joe and Grace's home, where kids and friends are running amok showcases the first glimpse into Gracie's askew mind. As the dramatic score comes in, Gracie opens the fridge to which she disapproves of the number of hot dogs they have. "I don't think we have enough hot dogs" she mutters to herself, where the immediate cut after shows a grill full of hot dogs. While humorous on the surface, the score doesn't lead you astray in the moment. Something is seriously wrong with Gracie's perception of what is in front of her. Her basic comprehension of the real world is horrifyingly sideways, to put it nicely.

Elizabeth's prodding forces Joe to reflect on how his relationship with Gracie came to be. In doing so, he questions whether his thirteen-year-old self fully consented to sleep with Gracie. Hearing this doubt about their love, Gracie has the audacity to blame Joe for seducing her. She believes that he was the one in power at the inception of their affair. The power dynamic in the past, and presently in the relationship is a predatory imbalance where Gracie is essentially holding Joe, quite possibly against his will. He was so young when this all began and he never had the ability or was afforded the space to heal.

One of Joe's hobbies is to house caterpillars and help them turn into monarch butterflies. He's a part of a Facebook group where he communicates with a friend that shares this hobby. Here we can see that Joe struggles to even hold a non-toxic relationship, suggesting that he and this friend travel to Mexico together to see a butterfly sanctuary. Replying "Aren't you married?" we see Joe become dejected and his emotional response is that of a wounded animal. Again, Joe has never been able to hold these types of relationships or friendships. Opposite of the butterflies he helps, he himself was never able to grow as a child within a metaphorical chrysanthemum, protected from Gracie and others like Elizabeth preying on him. Melton's physical acting as Joe is a part of how this is so powerfully portrayed. His shoulders hunched forward and an almost constant look of doing something wrong, Joe more looks like he's always on eggshells instead of in the comfort of his own home.

May December [2023]

All of this, which is a lot I know, just to have Elizabeth come in and treat Joe as if he is nothing but a story. A supporting character for her role as Gracie in this upcoming movie. She blurs the lines between acting and reality when she manipulates Joe to sleep with her, merely using him so that it feels real. This all comes to a head when in the end we see that the film Elizabeth has been preparing for appears to be some shitty straight to DVD movie and she is, in fact, a terrible actress. Turning her exploitation of Joe into a much more maligned mission of self-righteousness and detachment from reality. An all too common, and horrifying theme in May December.

Haynes' film is complex, yet quite simple? All of the pieces of these characters are right in front of us but there's so much to the iceberg left under the surface that you can't possibly look away. This is one of the strongest written films of the year, a huge kudos to Samy Burch and Alex Mechanik. Not to mention the melodramatic score by Marcelo Zarvos gets better and better as the film marches on.

Lastly, my goodness is Charles Melton a revelation here. His quiet acting is so powerful it shatters expectations. There are so many emotional moments that his character goes through that couldn't possibly be effective in the parameters of the story without Melton's nuance. As I mentioned the physical aspects of his acting, but the sheer emotion such as at his kids' graduation, the realization of a disappearing buffer between him and Gracie, is just gut wrenching. Portman and Moore are fantastic as always but the show stopper here is Melton, through and through.

Froth

Instead of spinning my own wheels on complexity within this film I'll just say, this is the perfect film for a nice stout. A thicker mouthfeel, darker taste, and roasted aroma will accent the melodramatic tones of the score and the film itself. There's lots of options out there that would be a great pairing wtih May December but I opted for the No Doubt Stout from Elliot Bay Brewing. It's a more simple stout that checks all your basic boxes. Similar to an oatmeal stout, the No Doubt Stout is incredibly smooth and creamy with some great roasted flavors. Overall it isn't boozy, instead opting for a well balanced profile that leans a little bitter on the end, which certainly isn't unwelcome. Some stouts can be a little too sweet.