A Date for Mad Mary

The story to some extent is as simple as someone coming out of jail and finding out her friends have moved on and developed without her and her coming to terms with that.

The search for a date is simply a way of showing her alienation and her fear of making new connections when her old ones lie broken.

The acting is low key and first rate.

Thoroughly enjoyed this movie, but in a melancholy way.

A Date for Mad Mary feels like the kind of film that if it had a French director and suitable name with a rhetorical flourish it would probably get a standing ovation and walk away with a Palme Dior. Nevertheless, it is a lovely film and very fine piece of film making.

Directing his first feature Darren Thornton does a great job adapting the film from a theatre monologue, 10 Dates with Mad Mary by Yasmine Akram. Akram for the record is best known for her role as Janine in season three of Sherlock.

The premise for the movie is the classic leading protagonist returning to their old world and life after a spell in prison. But a sharp script, elegantly shot, a neat soundtrack and with great all round performances from a largely unheralded but superb cast elevates the drama to top notch cinema.

There is plenty of pathos, laughs and romance as Mary McArdle returns to a life living with her mum and nan, with her best friend getting ready to get hitched and trying to resume the good and bad old times. In the process Mary finds herself searching for a suitable candidate of the male species as her plus one at her friend Charlene's wedding only to find a new and unexpected relationship along the way.

Much of the film's charm is its down to earth, funny and endearing nature. The straightforward but genuine Irish characters interact in a thoroughly engaging, subtly thought provoking and totally realistic manner. Snapshots of life which feel very believable.

And so we see Mary trying to reconcile her previous life and her past where she had the unfortunate mad prefix to her name. But Mary finds that the world she knew has moved on and also has to adapt to situations and new emotions when she stumbles upon part-time wedding photographer and musician Jess.

Mary is brilliantly played by Seána Kerslake as the slightly lost teenager while Charleigh Bailey as best friend Charlene and Tara Lee as the savvy and sweet Jess are also excellent.

A Date for Mad Mary has bags of Irish charm and is a terrific life affirming movie experience.

A Date for Mad Mary (2016) is an Irish film co-written and directed by Darren Thornton.

The movie stars Seána Kerslake as Mary. Mary is a young woman who, as far as I can tell, has no redeeming virtues. As the movie opens, she's being released from prison, after serving for six months. (We learn slightly later that she has committed a violent crime, and her victim now has a large scar on her face.)

Mary doesn't have any true friends. Her "best friend" is getting married, and Mary is maid of honor. However, the friend is late when she comes to get Mary at the prison gates. It becomes clear that the friend is distancing herself from Mary.

The plot, such as it was, involves Mary having to find a date for the wedding. That plot straggles along, but never comes to much.

Part of the reason I disliked the film was that at times the actors switched into what I would call an Irish patois, which I couldn't understand. At other times, their speech was perfectly intelligible, so I'm not sure what to make of that.

There are two stereotyped characters in supporting roles. Mary's mother appears decent enough. The mother likes to date younger men. It doesn't seem like a serious flaw to me, although Mary thinks it's terrible. The older grandmother sits in a chair and sends out zingers. Not much there, either.

We saw this movie at Rochester's excellent Little Theatre, as part of the wonderful ImageOut, the Rochester LGBT Film Festival. It will work well on the small screen.

The chair of the film selection committee told me he loved this movie. It has a respectable IMDb rating of 7.2. This means that my review is a minority report. However, there's no point in reviewing films if you just follow the crowd. These are my thoughts about the movie. I can't recommend it.

Could have been five, but missed a few details. First, the title doesn't describe the essence of the story. Second, the cover doesn't covey it either. OK, picky points over. Third, the ending (some directors are prone to this cutesy & nebulous non-creative trick) leaves the viewer hanging, e.g. wasn't clear who was on the phone. Fourth, we didn't get enough of the background of Mary's character and what sent her to jail. One of the central themes is the transformation of Mary which for some viewers to understand requires more background. The disfigurement of a person is not a trivial matter to not address. Won some awards at an Irish film festival.

Yes great acting and great actors. Yes a very good soundtrack and some sharp writing and excellent dialog. The relationship depicted between mother and daughter was especially on target. But the the thing that really makes this film outstanding is the existential subtext. Take Irving Welsh and "Trainspotting" and its final last minute narration:

"The truth is that I'm a bad person. But, that's gonna change - I'm going to change. This is the last of that sort of thing. Now I'm cleaning up and I'm moving on, going straight and choosing life. I'm looking forward to it already. I'm gonna be just like you. The job, the family, the big television. The washing machine, the car, the compact disc and electric tin opener, good health, low cholesterol, dental insurance, mortgage, starter home, leisure wear, luggage, three piece suite, DIY, game shows, junk food, children, walks in the park, nine to five, good at golf, washing the car, choice of sweaters, family Christmas, indexed pension, tax exemption, clearing gutters, getting by, looking ahead, the day you die."

Becoming an adult is a con game. The con you pull is on yourself. Frankly I have spend the better part of 20 years coming back to what my true core is, and who I really am. Mary is at that "place", where everyone is settling and literally settling into the person that society dictates, that family dictates. Social mores and binding observance of societal "normality" are not for everyone. Sometimes the price is too high.