Movie Review Maudie

Maudie (2017) 

Directed by Aisling Walsh 

Written by Sherry Wright

Starring Sally Hawkins, Ethan Hawke 

Release Date April 14th, 2017 

Published September 15th, 2017 

I’ve never been a fan of the heartstring tuggers. I find such things cloying and manipulative and I am far too cynical such things. And yet, even I am not immune to having my heartstrings tugged. The recently released biopic Maudie, starring the lovely Sally Hawkins, plucked every string like a classic string quartet. The story of real-life Nova Scotia-based artist Maude Lewi,s who achieved minor fame in the 1950s for her homespun paintings, is the rare tear-jerker with the cinematic skill to back up the uplift.

Maude, (Sally Hawkins) or Maudie to her family and friends, is a mousy woman who struggles with debilitating arthritis in her hands and ankles. She’s struggled to get by throughout life but has managed to carry one pregnancy. The baby was sadly lost just after birth, but otherwise she’s lived in the shadow of her brother and aunt who believe they know what is best for her. However, when Maude’s brother Richie sells her family home without telling her, Maude finally finds the courage to strike out on her own.

At the local market in her small-town home in Nova Scotia, Maude hears the local fishmonger, Everett Lewis (Ethan Hawke), advertising that he’s looking for a woman to clean his small home. Seeing an opportunity, Maude accepts the position and willingly endures Everett’s brutish, shy bullying. Ill-suited to female company, Everett is defensive and mean at first but slowly warms to having Maude around and the two begin a very slow walk toward the altar.

One day, when Everett fails to deliver fish to the summer home of a visiting New York socialite, Sandra (Kari Matchett), the socialite comes to Everett and Maude’s home to get her fish delivered. While there she spies Maude’s brilliantly beautiful and childlike paintings and is struck by their beauty. When she gets her fish, Sandra negotiates to also receive some hand-painted post cards from Maude. The cards are a hit, and they begin to sell at the local market as well.

Find my full length review in the Geeks Community at Vocal.