The most important scene in Todd Haynes’s “May December” had no rehearsal and very few takes. A psychological drama about an actress, Elizabeth (Natalie Portman), who enters the world of Gracie (Julianne Moore), an elderly woman who created a tabloid scandal decades ago by starting a sexual relationship with a 13-year-old, “May December” to Elizabeth’s Gracie. The desire to study for a role in a movie creates considerable friction. That tension comes to a head when the two women are standing together in Gracie’s bathroom, with Gracie showing Elizabeth her makeup routine. In a shockingly intimate, single-shot scene where the two characters metaphorically merge into one, Gracie delicately applies lipstick to Elizabeth to make them look alike.
“It’s a moment where they’re both trying to get really close to each other, and you don’t know what’s going to happen,” says Moore, sitting on a couch at a Sunset Strip hotel with her co-star. “It looks charming. It also looks dangerous.”
Portman nods in agreement, their rapport is hotter than their characters’ describing the fraught power struggle between actress and reluctant subject in the movie. It was a project that Portman (who also serves as a producer) wanted to make, sending Sammy Burch’s screenplay to director Haynes, hoping to spark something in him as well.
“I always dreamed of working with Todd,” he says. “I’m a huge admirer of him – his brain, his vision, his way of looking at the world. I’ve sent him things before that he didn’t take. But I thought he’d be a brilliant mind to bring this to life.”
She and Moore knew each other—they hung out, especially at Stevie Wonder concerts in London—but they never worked together because of how Hollywood worked. “It is very rare Two female roles (in the same film) that are not related to each other,” says Portman. Jumping in, Moore adds with a laugh, “It’s usually a family dynamic or they’re in love with each other.”
On the surface, the brittle, protective Gracie recalls Moore’s earlier incredible collaborations with Haynes on “Safe” and “Far From Heaven,” the Oscar-winner portraying sheltered women trapped in a rarefied bubble. But Moore doesn’t see his characters that way.
A key scene in “May December” has the two main characters metaphorically merging into one.
(Francois Duhamel/Netflix)
“I wouldn’t use the word ‘bubble,’ because I don’t think they’re there by themselves,” says Moore. “I think Todd and I are interested in culture and society and identity. We are interested in people who are responding to the world they are born into — how they succumb to it, how they react to it, or how it shapes them. Sometimes, I wonder if there really is an identity or if it’s just culture. Like, who is you? “It’s almost impossible to define yourself without something against you.”
For Portman, who won an Academy Award for playing a restlessly committed ballerina in “Black Swan,” Elizabeth represents another opportunity to examine an artist who goes to extremes to achieve greatness. Asked if it was by coincidence or design, Portman replies, “Performance has been central to my curiosity — how it relates to identity and how it relates to self, public and private. I’m sure being a public figure from an early age influenced my tastes. “It’s something I return to a lot.”
“May December” is full of thoughts about self-deception, especially with Gracie, who has raised a family with Joe (Charles Melton), clinging to the belief that their long-ago illicit love affair is now a healthy, happy marriage. Moore liked Burch’s script but initially struggled to get into the character’s mind.
“But then I realized that she is someone who has swallowed this narrative of being a princess. She feels she was saved from her life by her prince – but her prince was 13 years old. To do that, you have to raise that prince as your man when he’s a baby, and so he stays a baby.” As a result, Moore decided Gracie needed a lisp. “A lot of people who have words aren’t babies—their There’s just something about speaking,” she says. “But we associate it with a childlike quality.”
It gave Portman something physical that Elizabeth could begin to emulate as her subject. “That’s Julie’s talent,” says Portman, “and her generosity. She didn’t have Thinking about it (for me) – she might just be like ‘good luck’!
Both actresses have played real people, so they have experience with the kind of change Elizabeth is trying to make. So how accurate is the film’s portrayal of her vampire feasting on Gracie’s essence?
“You’re looking into someone’s heart, but you’re using their emotions and story as raw material,” Portman suggests. “I think all artists have the question, ‘What is it, ethically, to take someone’s emotions and turn them into entertainment?’ Obviously, I don’t think the process of most actors crosses Elizabethan lines. But it’s very close to the questions of journalism and documentary — when does portraying someone change the course of their life? That’s very much embedded in the story of this movie — of Gracie and John. Lives are completely changed by painting. It’s almost impossible to be the subject of a story without affecting someone’s life. “How much you affect, obviously, depends on the person.”
During the conversation, Portman and Moore frequently exchanged compliments, clearly happy that they were finally able to team up. Their characters are hidden behind masks, both of them vulnerable in their admiration. “(Gracie) couldn’t be further from Julie,” Portman insists. “Julie has nothing but compassion and empathy for everyone around her – and then this character No Empathy.” She turns to her co-star: “I was like, ‘Oh, this should be fun,’ because it’s the opposite of who you are.”
Moore considers that for a moment. “Well, you play, right? So it’s fun to play,” she replies before looking at me. “That’s where Natalie and I are very similar — I think we take our work very seriously, but we don’t take ourselves too seriously. It’s easy for us to playfully engage in this work — because it should Be.” Moore’s eyes go wide and excited. “We are Makes a movie. It should be fun. “
(TagsToTranslate)Julianne Moore
