Written And Directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal
Leda: "I left. When the oldest was seven and the youngest was five, I left. I abandoned them and I didn't see them for three years."
Nina: "What did it feel like without them?"
Leda: "It felt amazing."
Going into the Oscar season, I decided to go back and look at a movie that previously got an award contender much needed attention. That and the fact that the director has a certain movie coming out in March I cannot wait to see.
Yes, my first paragraph into this review was hinting at both Jessie Buckley and Maggie Gyllenhaal and they're quite a combination here too. Of course, there's also Olivia Colman at the heart of this drama. This might be one of Colman's best performances to date.
Taking on the role of translator and university professor, Leda Caruso, both Olivia Colman and Jessie Buckley were able to delve into the character in both the present day and the past. Their performances perfectly compliment one another.
In the present day, Leda's on vacation in Greece and encountered a roughish New York/Greek family. In particular, Leda seemed to see something in young mother, Nina (Dakota Johnson). The latter was married to Toni (Oliver Jackson-Cohen) but was sleeping with Will (Paul Mescal) while also clearly going through a form of depression. Oh and Nina's daughter's doll went missing, which made up a huge part of this movie.
In flashbacks, the younger Leda struggled to be a mother to her own daughter's Bianca and Martha and often seemed exasperated by them. This led to conflict with her partner, Joe (Jack Farthing) and an affair with Professor Hardy (Peter Skarsgard). At one point, Leda even abandoned her children for three years.
I did think this movie balanced the use of flashbacks and present day rather well with Leda given some moments of sympathy amidst her coldness at times. I would've liked a bit more time with Leda and Nina as the latter seemed fated to do something similar to the former. Oh and maybe a hatpin isn't such a good gift to give someone who you've stolen from. Just a thought.
- The movie's based on the 2006 novel of the same name by Elena Ferrante.
- There's some nice supporting performances from Ed Harris and Dagmara Domińczyk as Lyle and Callie in this movie.
- Standout music: Bon Jovi's Living On A Prayer and Talking Heads People Like Us.
- Chronology: Present day Greece. Leda mentioned being 48 during Callie's birthday celebrations.
The Lost Daughter turned out to be a sobering debut for Maggie Gyllenhaal as a director. It's not an easy watch but it's anchored by a trio of terrific performances from Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley and Dakota Johnson. All three of them are given great material to work with.
Rating: 8 out of 10
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