So, I came into Julia not knowing what to expect, but knowing that it was going to be pretty good. Tilda Swinton tends to find those less mainstream stories that won't get bastardized by improperly prioritized TV trailers and collectors plushes made in Japan (not sure where that came from…oh well…). Though not the best kidnapping movie I've seen (Man on Fire, thank you), this definitely turned out to be pretty solid.
It follows the story of Julia (Tilda Swinton) who is basically MILF-tastical white trash: mangled hair, an uncomfortable amount of make-up, unmatching bra hanging out the back of a dime store dress like that old hag that some poor daughter brings on Maury and says "My Mom Dresses to 'Sexy' for her age!" Between getting plastered every night and finding herself in some random guy's bed every morning, she works for a real estate agency as a…who the fuck cares? She gets fired anyway. Granted, getting fired hasn't changed her lifestyle really and she responds to it like nothing happens except now she's bored enough to attend AA, though doesn't really seem to care. It's as if she's accepted this as her destiny.
During one of those AA meetings, she's approached by Elena (Kate del Castillo) who says she needs help with a plan to kidnap her son from the boy's father/grandfather (the story flip-flops between the two, they're the not the same guy like some poor daughter brings on Maury…) because every boy needs his mother or some junk. Offering $50K for the assist, Julia says what I would say: "fuck yes," but on hearing how loaded this mother actually is* (it's really daddy with the money), she pulls off a double-cross, kidnapping the kid again and demanding $2 million for the little snot-nosed brat. She's never done this before and is a bit panicked by it, but it's not like she really has anything to lose.
Though as she spends more and more time with her captive, Julia begins to develop an appreciation for motherhood and you notice her start to change dramatically, beautifully. There's a sense of purpose that she hasn't had before and it invades her psyche like alcohol. As a result, she develops Lima Syndrome (the reverse of Stockholm Syndrome) and for a little while even I forgot that these two weren't mother and son.
Julia is good at being panicked (keep in mind this is different from being "frantic," which gets mistaken often). Scene by scene, problem by problem, you can tell she's at a loss, but awkward and uncomfortable situations are nothing new to Julia. She's an alcoholic who's not afraid of the good ol' one-night stand so she acts on instinct like when someone says "The only protection I need is the protection of Jesus Christ." Yeah…gotta get away from that one. Thankfully, this movie doesn't overdo those moments. Any humor comes from the situation and the occasional irrational behavior of Julia because, let's face it, it's been a while since she's had to say "This is my first time" to anything.
Julia takes one more crazy turn that I really wish it would have carried on further, but at the same time, this movie was about Julia herself and her transformation as she goes from thinking only of herself to having to look out for this kid. There's a sweetness to it like she feels she's good at this whole nurturing thing (the kid's tied up so take that with a grain of salt) so it's something she may want to look into. Go back to that "Protection of Jesus Christ" guy and let the good lord provide (gross. Ok, stopping that.).
Anyway, really enjoyed the movie, great story, Tilda Swinton is amazing and has always done masterful work and this is no different. Wasn't blown away by the experience (but there were some moments, man…there were some moments…) but it was a great watch. For that, a good, strong 8 dustbusters out of 10 from me. Worth the watch.
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