User Reviews

I must first confess that I was pleasantly surprised by the exceptional performance of the actress Melissa McCarthy who is (was?) almost-systematically accustomed to cinematographic pieces of junk such as Life of the Party (2018), Ghostbusters (2016) or Charlie's Angels (2000). I sincerely hope that this film will mark a turning point in her career, with a before and an after.

Then, the subject is not really bankable: no superhero, no sexy actress, no Computer-Generated Imagery. In addition, the main characters are two insignificant loosers who will attract the wrath of the FBI because of their secret activity of a two-penny faker and will then be within an inch of jail. Of course, with such a script, the movie will probably not be a hit at the world box-office.

Nevertheless, the movie is delightfully excellent and describes with subtlety and sensitivity an ineluctable descent into the abyss. Lee Israel (Melissa McCarthy) was a writer with some success. One of her books was even mentioned in the New York Times best sellers. But, success is now part of the past and she regularly has huge difficulties in paying her rent. By chance, in an old book of a public library, she discovers a real typed letter from a well-known female writer. Begins then an improvised career of a scammer with false letters from real personalities that she skillfully engineers within her shabby apartment.

As a synthesis, Can You Ever Forgive Me? (2018) is excellent! 8/9 of 10

I didn't know what to expect with this film. I was very pleasantly surprised. This movie is not a comedy and the performers did a great job of capturing people who are not always made for this world. Melissa McCarthy gives a impressive performance as Lee Israel and Richard Grant is wonderful as her ne'er do well friend and accomplice. I really like the atmosphere and the ability to capture the grit and seediness of New York in the early 90's. Marielle Heller and McCarthy did a fantastic job of taking someone with all the likability of my mother in law and making her sympathetic.

After the abysmal Ghostbusters remake and the endlessly panned Happytime Murders, true fans of McCarthy will be glad to see her redemption in this dramatic turn. McCarthy really shines in her role as author Lee Israel and effortlessly portrays the loneliness and insecurity of her character. Her rapport with Grant (and even with the cat) is wonderful, and the writing is clever. This was a surprising and delightful highlight at Telluride this year.

The celebrity biographer Lee Israel was in her own way an expert spinner of "alternative facts" and "fake news" decades before both became commonplace in the digital age. Plenty of people who should have known better were willing to accept these "facts" and spread this "news."

Melissa McCarthy reaches an artistic career peak with her performance as the late writer who had been one of the top names in her field in the 70s and early 80s before cultural evolution (or devolution, depending on how you look at it) combined with her own abrasiveness and alcoholism led publishers to shun her work. McCarthy adapts her familiar techniques perfectly to this particular character.

With bills mounting, and facing loss of prestige and income, she began drinking heavily and sinking into a deep, almost psychotic, depression when, half by chance, she discovered that a lot of money could be made by selling letters from famous people like Katharine Hepburn and Fanny Brice. The juicier the content, the more cash they commanded. A talented and witty writer herself, she was familiar enough with the style of the such figures as Noel Coward and Dorothy Parker to forge imitations that convinced professional collectors of their authenticity. Quotes from some of her fakes even ended up in respectable publications. Eventually she resorted to doctoring correspondence which she stole from libraries and selling the results for high prices to sometimes shady dealers. Here was someone who loved and respected outstanding writers and their works but was driven by circumstance to, in effect, falsifying their legacies.

Some of the little touches that deepen our understanding of her character include a scene where she is watching the 1941 film version of "The Little Foxes" and starts delivering the dialogue along with the actors and even accurately imitating Bette Davis's distinctive giggle. Much of the time she is swilling scotch and her ever-so-slightly slurred speech reflects this half-inebriated state.

The movie is shot in New York, making use of locations that still look much as they did more than a quarter of a century ago, when the classic New York of the early-to-mid 20th century, an environment conducive to Israel's own earlier success, had mostly faded out. Julius, the bar where a few key scenes are set, existed then and still exists now. (A conversation therein about her illegal shenanigans is softly underscored by Marlene Dietrich's recording of "Illusions," Dietrich being the subject of one of Israel's Noel Coward forgeries.)

Most of the interiors (book stores, archives, Israel's funky apartment, her agent's more elegant and expansive one) are genuine.

McCarthy is strongly supported by Richard E. Grant in a showy, colorful performance as a fellow alcoholic and partner in crime, Stephen Spinella as a kind but increasingly suspicious rare book dealer, Brandon Scott Jones as a fussy book store clerk who, to his regret, rubs Israel the wrong way, Jane Curtin as her no-nonsense literary agent, Anna Deveare Smith as an old friend and numerous others.

"Can You Ever Forgive Me?", based on and named after Israel's slender autobiographical recap of this period, is a highly intelligent and detailed rendering of a complex human being, by turns endearing and repulsive, brilliant and stupid.

Melissa McCarthy is not known for her dramatic roles, but this film might change that. It's the gripping story of Lee Israel, a struggling Manhattan writer who in the early 1990s undertook the extraordinary step of falsifying letters from famous people to make ends meet.

McCarthy is an eye-opener here as the hard-drinking, acid-tongued Israel, a miserable middle-aged woman who sought friendship in precious few souls, one of them being a mysterious figure on the Upper West Side portrayed with fierce verve by Richard E. Grant, who winds up becoming something of an accomplice to her enterprise. She is desperate to pay her bills. His murky story becomes more known as the film progresses. The two of them are an odd couple, as they both have setbacks and misery to look back upon, but their pessimism and misanthrope are not equally shared.

This film will offer a glimpse of nostalgia for anyone who remembers New York in a now quaint era, when struggling writers still lived as adults in Manhattan, when life was endearingly bleak and bookstores were not yet massive chains. That sense of atmosphere I greatly admire. Recommended to anyone who enjoys a scathing story of literary scheming.

I usually don't end up liking Melissa McCarthy films. She is usually in comedies directed by her husband that aren't funny and have nothing good going for it. I was intrigued in seeing her take on a more serious role and one based on an actual biographical person than a made up "funny" person. I never heard of Lee Israel or the case of her forgery and all the stuff she got away with so I wanted to learn more about this. I enjoyed this film. Its not anything that's gonna stick out when the year ends but for a one time watch its fine, and I can finally say I enjoyed a McCarthy performance quite a bit.

The film is about the real life story of down out of luck biographical author, Lee Israel. Her books aren't doing well and she finds it hard to find inspiration. She can't afford rent or veterinarian care for her sick cat. She decides to forge letters signed and typed up by famous entertainment personalities. At first she finds the scam to be lucrative but eventually the buyers become suspicious and the FBI get involved. The film basically tells the tale of her forgery, until she gets caught, and the aftermath.

McCarthy does a good job here. She doesn't completely disappear into the role but its a believable performance that showcases her best qualities. The film is proficient in mixing comedy with humor and brings forth a rather intriguing plot in a way that keeps you engaged. I already liked Marielle Heller as The Diary of a Teenage Girl was a really interesting and well made film as it was. I think she finds a penchant for storytelling that mixes humor and drama well.

Its easy to see why something like this would have been easy to get away with in an earlier time. Its an idea people wouldn't easily think of. Crime doesn't pay, after a while anyways. If you want to see a solid biopic and an even more solid Melissa McCarthy performance then this is your film. its not anything amazing but its a generally interesting tale about a shady author that you may not have known about.

7/10

Going into CAN YOU EVER FORGIVE ME? I had rather low expectations. As I walked out of the theater, I was impressed by the fact that director Marielle Heller and actress Melissa McCarthy (who last starred in the disastrous THE HAPPYTIME MURDERS) had managed to make me care about a film focused on subject matter that I found rather uninteresting to begin with. The concept at the heart of this film will certainly appeal to some, but unfortunately for me, it was the one thing actively working against the film from the get-go. And indeed, during the film's rather dull first ten minutes, I feared that I would be bored for the next hour and a half. Thankfully, however, the introduction of Richard E. Grant's character immediately elevated the film, and his dynamic with McCarthy's Lee Israel (an author who forged hundreds of letters in the 1990s) is undoubtedly the highlight of the film, providing hearty laughs and emotional depth in equal measure. And McCarthy herself proves more than capable of handling a meaty dramatic role that aptly showcases her talent and makes one wish that she didn't star in such films as the aforementioned HAPPYTIME MURDERS. To all the filmmakers out there: McCarthy has talent. Use it.

I might not have been very invested in the film's story, but McCarthy and Grant (who should definitely be in the running for a Best Supporting Actor nomination next year) certainly make CAN YOU EVERY FORGIVE ME? worth watching.

I started to give this film a "9" rating, but frankly couldn't find anything in it that I felt was less than exceptional. I had never heard of Lee Israel, and Melissa McCarthy's funny and often heartbreaking performance in this film has made me want to read her book that inspired this film and learn more about her. The screenplay has a wonderful way of portraying Israel and Jack Hock as criminals, but at the same time making them both very human and very vulnerable, each in their own way. There is a scene between them near the end that tore me up. I hope this film finds the accolades it deserves, it's great to finally see a gem in a year of remakes, CGI and dull comedies.

Many of the greatest writers to have ever lived wrote their stories and ideas whisked under the heavy smoke of dive bars and speak easy's in New York City; basked in the heavy odour of dried gin, bourbon and whiskey, some of the world's literary genius' stories have been told on the silver screen over the last few decades. Can You Ever Forgive Me?, I can assure you, is not one of those stories.

Yet, even though Lee Isreal (Melissa McCarthy) isn't one of those writers, her story is just as entertaining and captivating as one of the greats.

Isreal, played masterfully by McCarthy, is a frumpy, miserable biographer who has profiled some iconic subjects, including Katharine Hepburn, Tallulah Bankhead, Dorothy Kilgallen and Estee Lauder; the later who was easily responsible for destroying her career due to a less than favourable depiction. After her biography of Lauder, Isreal quickly declined into a life of alcoholism, wage labour and loneliness. Can You Ever Forgive Me? picks up right at Israel's multitude of misfortune; showcasing her inability to pay rent, live in less than sanitary living conditions and barely being able to support herself and her sick cat, Jersey.

After being fired from her job for drinking while working, Isreal coincidentally runs into an old acquaintance Jack Hock (Richard E. Grant) at a local bar. While the two reminisce of 'pissing' off some guests at a recent party, the two share some stories, drinks and laughs together, and quickly become drinking buddies and eventual friends, much to Isreal's surprise. The chemistry between McCarthy and Grant, although not romantic, is reminiscent of some of the best Bonnie and Clyde type pairings in film in recent memory. While the duo are both very different personalities, thanks to the forceless acting of both nuanced and comedic actors, Lee and Jack bounce off one another's miscreant behaviour as if they were two hyenas; starving on the streets of New York, drunk with possibility, old memories and wonderment. Watching Can You Ever Forgive Me? just for the promise of getting some of the best buddy-con comedy moments of 2018, would be an understatement.

Yet, no matter how many good times and stiff drinks the two share, the realities of the real world comes crumbling down on them in disarraying fashion, especially onto Isreal. Threatened with eviction and the possibility of losing her cat at any given moment due to its declining health, as fate would have it, Isreal stumbles across a genuine letter written by Fanny Brice during her research at a local library. Thinking of it more as a meal ticket than as a collectors piece, Isreal sells the letter to a local bookstore collector Anna (Dolly Wells), thus giving her the brilliant idea to embellish other letters by prominent celebrity figures for monetary gain. Visiting local archives and stealing original letters, embellishing her own letters out of thin air or adding her own flair to already existing letters, Isreal's escapades amounted to over four-hundred forged pieces of work.

While the real-life Israel passed away in 2014, the author's most infamous works still remain to be her criminal activity and the embellishment of these letters, as well as the confessional novel in which this movie is based on. While upon its release, many critics, publishers and the literary community found the novel to be overtly tongue-in-cheek, and merely another form of a meal ticket for Isreal following her criminal activity. Yet, the film itself is a very sombre and lumpy depiction, very carefully avoiding as much spectacle, glamour and embellishment of its own, telling a very straight forward story of a woman who is down on her luck and who's back is against the wall, left with no other options.

Can You Ever Forgive Me? wouldn't be able to exist without the quite exquisite performance of McCarthy; its clear she wasn't copying anyone else while portraying an unpleasant woman with not much positivity in her life. McCarthy, who was recommended to the director by her husband Ben Falcone, already being cast in a role, following the departure of Julianne Moore, puts to rest any unease one may have about a dramatic career for the infamously notorious comedienne, who's rise to fame came quickly and almost unexpectedly in 2011 following a star making performance in Bridesmaids. McCarthy showcases a range of excellent sleight and dry comedic demure with her negativity, slightly giving the audiences glimpses of her dark wit and using it towards an unlikable character whose moral compass isn't very aligned with the realities and expectations of the world.

Alongside her partner in crime, McCarthy's performance is so nuanced yet gripping, it elevates the performances of everyone around her, including Dolly Wells, a naive and charming inherited bookstore owner who also shows some interest in Isreal's talent and personality. Isreal's interaction, including a very emotionally closed off 'date' with Anna at a restaurant are among the most memorable scenes in the film. Luckily for the tone of the film, none of these interactions are overtly showy, which sits respectfully next to the tone of film. Sadly, as we've seen too many times in the past, Academy Awards voters aren't always easily convinced with very subtle and quietly ingenious performances. It's without question that the studio and actress herself will be campaigning for a Best Actress Nomination come this holiday season, but only time will tell whether voters will respond to the actress's transformation.

While Can You Ever Forgive Me? could be a hard film to recommend to others, due mostly to the fact that mentioning McCarthy's name may give general audiences' some sort of physical, goof-ball level comedic performance expectations, no thanks to horrid roles for McCarthy in The Boss and Tammy. Yet, McCarthy proves she is not to be underestimated. Can You Ever Forgive Me? may not prove to be the best performance by an actress in 2018, but it sure as heck may be the most pleasantly surprising; a type of performance audiences can clap and root for come Awards season and for many other comedy actresses in the near future. Here is looking at you Kate McKinnon.

Greetings from Lithuania.

"Can You Ever Forgive Me?" (2018) is a wonderfully acted, written and directed movie. I loved performances by two leads: Melissa McCarthy & Richard E. Grant - they were both outstanding, well deserving Oscar nominations they got. This movie was also very well paced - at running time 1 h 42 min It never dragged and I was involved into this story of which I knew nothing from beginning till end.

Overall, "Can You Ever Forgive Me?" was sometimes funny, very involving, sad and yet a bit uplifting story very well told. This is a very good movie overall.

Melissa McCarthy does an admirable job of giving us a portrait of a trouble soul who finds an illegal niche in her life. She is a moderately successful author who has fallen on hard times. She is harsh and mean and an alcoholic. She discover, however, a way to pass off collectors' manuscripts. She befriends another troubled soul, a gay man with his own issues, and together they manage to make it...for a while. Well done piece.

That 'Can You Ever Forgive Me' was one of the most acclaimed films of the year and that it was based on a very interesting person, where her strengths were also her undoing somewhat, were reasons enough to see it in the first place. Another was curiosity, being interested but a little nervous about seeing Melissa McCarthy in a part completely different than her usual ones, being known for her sometimes bubbly but mostly brash roles (the opposite of here).

'Can You Ever Forgive Me' turned out to be well worth the look and more, that is a bit of an understatement in my view actually. Its acclaim in my eyes is more than richly deserved, in one of the better films of the year in a year that was/is pretty variable. Was not sure as to whether McCarthy would work in a dramatic role and easily her most serious one to date, but her performance for me was one of 2018's biggest surprises and in a good way (more on that later).

Maybe the first ten minutes were a bit of a slow starter, but actually this reviewer found hardly anything wrong with 'Can You Ever Forgive Me'. Despite being a generous reviewer usually, this is a distinction that did not apply for many 2018 films.

It is beautifully filmed, never trying to do too much so it never looks overblown while not looking static. The locations are also lovely while in perfect keeping with the not too optmistic but never overly-depressing atmosphere. The film similarly had clever use of music that didn't jar with the mood with each scene's mood, while the direction is sympathetic while not once sugar-coating things.

Furthermore, the script matches Lee Israel's character traits to a tee. It is witty without being over-reliant on that, considering the story is a serious one. It is intelligent. And it is uncompromising. Although the story is hard-hitting, it isn't overly serious and it is also very human and sensitive. Israel herself feels like a real character, not a stereotype or a cartoon.

As said, one of the year's biggest surprises was seeing an against type McCarthy giving her best performance to date, before she was hit and miss to me and it was dependent on the material while here she was quite mesmerising and her unapologetic traits come over powerfully. Richard E Grant shares terrific chemistry with her and gives a performance that matches her in intensity and humanity. Jane Curtin and Dolly Wells are especially spot on of a supporting cast more than up to McCarthy and Grant's level.

On the whole, great. 9/10

I went into this film not knowing a single thing about it. I had no idea it was based on a true story, I didn't know who Lee Israel was, and I didn't know if this was going to be a drama, horror, romance, or some kind of coming-of-age type of film. I just didn't know one single thing about it. I'm glad I approached it this way!

With that said, I also put my curiosity about Melissa McCarthy's dramatic debut on hold, not exactly sure I was ready to see such a change. It took me five years after its release to give it a shot. Still, not knowing what it was about.

As the story unfolded, I realized that I was going through all the thoughtful processes of how Lee was going to get herself out of the financial messes she was in, and when I saw the smirk on Melissa's face as she created her first forged letter, I too felt like it was all making sense.

This film is not exciting in the sense that we've seen such physical comedy from McCarthy in her previous projects, nor does 1990s' New York have to be viewed as gritty, though it always appears dark. It's also not constantly riddled with dialogue. It's perfectly paced. This film is purely meant to think, right along side the main characters, and feel for them as we watch them get by in life.

Lee's desperation to make a few dollars just to get out of arrears allows me to cheer on her wrongdoings, but I felt different when it turned into full-fledged crime.

But as much as Melissa McCarthy surprises us all with her dramatic acting ability (think Tom Hanks or Robin Williams as they crossed over, with their underlining wit shining through), for me, the unsung hero is Richard E. Grant, whose character somehow looks and behaves as some strange mixture of Christopher Walken-meets-David Bowie. He's flamboyant, fun, and a beautiful mess all in one. Melissa was obviously great, but Grant truly steals all of the scenes he's in!

This is one of those films where I watched it once and told my friends that "it was OK". Nothing special, I'd say. But I found myself rewatching it shortly thereafter, then reading more about Lee Israel, and now interested enough to read Israel's book that inspired the film.

It's a slow-to-burn type of interest, where I didn't think it was as great as it was upon first viewing. I sit at a 7/10 rating, but I'm sure in time it will eventually become one of my favourite films for the simple fact that it's like a sleeper: Ignored at first, but later regarded as very unexpectedly fantastic.

I was surprised how many reviewers called her vile, despicable, loser, trash, criminal. Yes, she became a criminal, but she was once an accomplished author who lost the pulse of the public and couldn't write what would sell as she got older. Is it because she is a woman that so much hatred is flung on her?? So MANY MEN commit atrocities and huge rip off scams and I don't see a ton of reviewers calling them all these horrible names when they make a movie about them. Maybe Lee wasn't the most socially adept person, but her crime was out of desperation and I found the scene with her sick cat and the heartless vet employees heartbreaking. I guess a lot of you people don't know what it's like to have life spiral outta control and what it's like to grow older and have fewer or no friends, because people move and a lot of your friends start dying off as you get to 50+ years. Her crime impacted mostly wealthy people purchasing a luxury item basically, so I don't feel it was so horrible, wasn't like she was buying a damn mansion and a yacht and diamonds and Ho's with the money like the big Enron, Freddie Mac and Sallie Mae executives, or Bernie Madoff. Who robbed HUGE tons of money simply outta greed and almost tanked our whole economy and left people homeless, jobless, hungry and desperate and most of them get a slap on the hand or go to a luxury white collar crime jail for a few months or years. I look forward to see the comments that will come out in the next few years when they make a movie about Trump's corruption and utter lack of conscience about letting this virus spiral out of control and kill innocent people and front line workers (You know nurses are quitting their jobs left and right from sheer exhaustion and fear as the numbers keep climbing as I am typing these words) while he spewed nothing but lies to all america. Now that's my idea of a Monster Criminal and should count as CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY, not some poor old cranky woman who made a few forgeries to keep a roof over her head and food on her plate. She didn't kill anyone, she didn't make anyone deathly ill. She didn't leave families and elderly people homeless, hungry or jobless. She got busted, PLEADED GUILTY and got her punishment. WILL TRUMP????? :o Do you EVEN CARE???

I think Melissa did a great job portraying Lee and her desperate circumstances, terrible choices and unfriendly demeanor. I enjoy movies about real people and as for all you Harsh critics with nasty words and no forgiveness for what is basically a mild crime. Remember, "Let he whom is without sin cast the first stone." Pretty sure u guys casting those stones aren't being really honest with who YOU really are. In the famous words of Seth Meyer, "Ya BURNT!" ;D

This movie has the typical issues of a serious movie version of a book by and about an unlikable, real person. Melissa McCarthy gives a fine performance as Lee Israel, a writer on the slide, alcoholic, depressed, and broke, who eases into selling forged and stolen autographed letters from bygone celebrities. Like many a performance depicting a depressed character, she shows a low affect, which is often bleak and uninteresting, ameliorated by a foul mouth and her love for her pet cat -- if you're a cat lover, which I am not. Richard E. Grant has a more interesting role as the gay hustler who sponges off her, and ultimately becomes an accomplice in her schemes. Yet the essential stupidity of his character makes the movie turn into a small-scale tragedy about people for whom the audience can feel no real sympathy.

Given the subject and the characters, the performances and movie can be seen as a bit of a triumph, but in the end, I could not really care about anyone in the movie. The most interesting thing about it were the scenes shot in the venerable Argosy Book Store, where I have been a customer for half a century -- it looks like the first time in longer than that that the place was neatened, even minimally.

Melissa McCarthy has been on the scene for awhile, but she's never been as good as she is in Can You Ever Forgive Me? Known mostly for her wacky, brash comedy (Bridesmaids, The Heat, or almost every other film she made since Bridesmaids) or quirky bubble headed characters (Gilmore Girls). This time, she plays a character so real, so flawed, so salt of the earth, and so deeply human that I have a newfound respect for her as a performer.

That said, Can You Ever Forgive Me? isn't without humor. This story is told with a little more sass than you'd expect from the trailers. A New York writer, Lee Israel (McCarthy) has fallen on hard times and she's desperate for money. Since no one will publish her latest idea for a biography (on Fanny Brice), she turns to selling counterfeit literally documents by well known authors as a way to make ends meet. She enlists the help of fellow bar fly (Richard E. Grant) to help her and they both end up getting way over their heads.

Can You Ever Forgive Me? captures the atmosphere of early 90's New York perfectly and every exchange and mannerism feels painfully real. Nothing feels overwritten or clever for the sake of being clever. McCarthy and Grant have excellent chemistry and keep the film rolling along with aplomb and make it a must see.

I get that this type of story can't really have anything exciting to offer, but the terrible pacing and long dragged out scenes, made the 106 min runtime feel like 3 hours. It should've been trimmed down/sped up to no more than 85 mins. Nevermind it was a totally boring topic for a biography - like who really cares except for maybe the writers/authors out there. There are many more interesting and must-be-told biopics out there than this one. However, I will say I was very impressed with McCarthy's outstanding and out-of-her-wheelhouse performance. Good on her to expose her talent range. Even Richard E. Grant was perfect for this role and a great match for McCarthy's character. Directing and cinematography were decent and the score on point. Would I see it again? Nope. Would I recommend it? Only to writers and McCarthy fans, of which I am, and the only reason I chose to see it.

A great story, which made me sigh and left me warm. Richard E Grant was superb, doing the Richard he does do well, his eyes overflowing with feeling at times. Melissa embodied and created her character equally. Superb.

Some cracking quotes such as: Lounge Singer: This next song goes out to all the agoraphobic junkies who couldn't be here tonight.

I had laughs, sighs, a gasp or two and a cracking story. Fully entertained, I loved it.

8/10

This is a very different story as it for once gives a true life crime story of someone falling into crime to pay the bills and seeing if from their angle without dressing it up or looking for empathy and sympathy for the perpetrator. It is not embellished too much to make it overly dramatic as Hollywood too often does, which I think makes the film, it is a quite ordinary but great tale.

Mellisa McCarthy and Richard E Grant are both superb in their roles. McCarthy makes you believe the character was written just for her and Grant plays an excellent British eccentric, again a role that you almost feel no one else could have played.

One of the best films of 2019 so far for me.

"Can You Ever Forgive Me?" is a bio-pic about author Lee Israel. As the movie opens, reminding is that it is "Based on a True Story", we are told it is "1991" and Lee fired from her job as an article editor of some sort. Lee attends a party hosted by her agent (who never calls her back). Lee soon leaves, but not before stealing a coat and some other things. Lee is 3 months behind in her rent, and out of sheer desperation, she sells a framed letter that Katherine Hepburn once wrote to her. Lee cannot believe her good fortune to fetch $175 for the letter... At this point we are 10 min. into the movie, but to tell you more of the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

Couple of comments: this is the latest movie from director Marielle Heller, who a few years ago brought us the brilliant coming-of-age movie "The Diary of a Teenage Girl". Here she goes in a very different direction, bringing to the big screen Lee Israel's memoir about her literary forgeries (making fake letters from famous people from back in the day). "I do a better Dorothy Parker than Dorothy Parker herself", she sneers. Along the way, we get to know Lee's personality, and let's just say that she isn't the easiest person. "I like cats better than I like people", she observes. A fair amount of the movie (conveniently disregarded entirely in the movie's trailer) shines light on Lee as a lesbian. As it happens, she also befriends Jack, a gay guy. If it sounds like there is a lot of sadness and loneliness in the movie, you'd be right, and none of this would be worth watching, but there comes Melissa McCarthy to the rescue. Smartly foregoing her 'default' starring role as the bratty and crude woman (Life of the Party; Spy; The Heat; Identity Thief, and on and on), here she plays what really amounts to a pitiful figure. Honestly, I don't know that McCarthy has ever been better than in this role. She single-handedly makes this movie worth watching. I wouldn't be at all surprised if she gets a Best Actress Oscar nomination for this role. Last but not least, there is a ton of great music in the film, both as to the original score (by Nate Heller) and as to the song placements (including Roxy Music's Same Old Scene, Paul Simon's Can't Run But, and Lou Reed's Goodnight Ladies, just to name those).

"Can You Ever Forgive Me?" has been gradually expanding in theaters, and finally reached my art-house theater here in Cincinnati. The Friday early evening screening where I saw this at was attended okay but not great (about 10 people). I can't really say that it surprised me there weren't more people there. I mean, this it not really a feel-good movie, au contraire... Nevertheless I'm glad I saw it, and if you have any interest in this story or are simply a fan of Melissa McCarthy, I'd readily suggest you check this out, be it in the theater, on VOD, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray, and draw your own conclusion.

Like many successful film comediennes (Jerry Lewis, Steve Martin) of the past Melissa McCarthy yearns to be taken seriously as biographer alchoholic forger, Lee Israel in Can You Ever Forgive Me. She shouldn't given the end to end funk she remains in in this torpid downer that has her trundling around Manhattan trying to pull the wool over the eyes of cozy book store owners. The dodge itself, lacking much if any suspense along with dialog substituting cynicism for wit and McCarthy's inability to stretch enough to touch her nose never takes the film above the glum level.

Biographer Lee Israel's life is spiraling downward. An insensitive lout with a drinking problem, money worries and a sick cat she devises a plan to create forgeries of notable personalities (Noel Coward, Dorothy Parker) to pay the rent, get meds for the cat, drink and continue her surly lifestyle. She takes on a partner Jack, (E.Grant) every bit as self absorbed when the Feds begin to close in.

Director Marielle Heller immediately paints herself in a corner with the unsavory Israel as her protagonist. There is very little wiggle room to sympathize with someone akin to point shaving in college and Heller is unable to make this unapologetic slob likable for more than two minutes at a time. McCarthy's performance compounds the problem. Flat and monotone she simply fails to bring life or interest to her predicament as she sullies her and collectors trades with gall and duplicity while offering copious amounts of self pity. Richard E. Grant as sleazy pal Jack piles the dissipation on with a bit of an elder stateman With Nail and I performance from 30 years back to assure the muck this film is mired in never strays.

Directed with a banal erraticism McCarthy's drab performance languishes throughout and "Forgive" could use a lot of it but not from me. A bungled disappointment.