A 36-year-old woman is arrested for having an affair with a 13-year-old boy, gives birth to him in prison, and marries him after her release.
Based on a shocking incident that actually happened, the film ‘May December’ directed by Todd Haynes, who has skillfully dealt with social themes in “Velvet Goldmine,” “Beyond Eden,” and “Carol,” and co-starring Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore, will be released in theaters on July 12, 2012. will be released in theaters on Friday, July 12.
Music director/critic Yuji Shibasaki focused on the film’s unique use of music and the keyword “epistemological relativism,” which also appears in the film. He will read the sincerity and criticality of the production team that can be glimpsed from this film. This is the 16th installment of the series “The Music Selection Creates the Film.
This article contains descriptions of the contents of the film. Please be forewarned.
INDEX
Iconic Phrase: “Feel Seen“
I want you to feel seen.” This line appears at the beginning of the film ‘May December’ where actress Elizabeth (played by Natalie Portman), known for her roles in TV and movies, visits the home of Grace (played by Julianne Moore), whom she will portray in her next project, during a home party scene. It follows her initial greeting to Grace, a stranger at the time. Translated literally, it means “I want you to feel that you are being seen.” However, the phrase “feel seen” used here is a distinctly American idiom, implying a deep sense of empathy (to the point of feeling understood or empathized with).
In the Japanese subtitles, it is smoothly translated as “I want you to feel at ease,” which might gloss over the original meaning of “feel seen.” Upon closer consideration, this phrase “feel seen” embodies a subtle distance between its literal meaning and its idiomatic sense, reflecting the intriguing ambiguity prevalent in ‘May December.’ Why does feeling “seen” lead to “empathy” or “ease”? When someone perceives our inner selves, do they naturally feel empathy and ease towards us? Moreover, what exactly does it mean to “see through” or to be “seen through”?
This film, ‘May December’ is the latest work by Todd Haynes, a contemporary master filmmaker whose many films, including ‘Carol’ and ‘I’m Not There,’ have been highly acclaimed, and he has teamed up with Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore, two of the most famous actors of our time.
The film features a brilliant performance by Portman, who is meeting for the first time with Moore, a regular member of Haynes’ team since ‘Far from Heaven,’ an outstanding script by Sammy Burch, a newcomer who used to be a casting director, and of course, Haynes’ first-rate aesthetic direction and screen production. Since its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival last year, the film has been highly acclaimed by critics and audiences in many respects.
Here is the synopsis. The two main characters are Elizabeth, an actress, and Gracie, an ordinary woman who is the model for the role she will play in her next film. Gracie once had an affair at the age of 36 with a part-time clerk at the pet store where she worked at the time. No, adultery is probably too mild a word, because Joe, the part-timer, was a very good friend of Gracie’s. He was a very good man. Joe was a friend of her son Georgie, who was only 13 years old when the affair was discovered. Moreover, Gracie was pregnant with Joe’s child, which she gave birth to in prison after being arrested and sentenced for child sexual assault. The incident shocked many people and became a major scandal, involving not only Gracie and Joe themselves, but also their families and acquaintances, and sparking a flurry of speculation and slander. However, in the midst of these headwinds, Gracie officially married Joe after her release from prison, and they started a new family.
