Maudie: Una vita a colori

What a good film. And most impressive is that it is actually based on a true story (sorry, I haven't done my research before the film, so when the documentary bits came at the end, I was like No way, that was actually for real!). I am not sure it can really be called a "feel good" movie - life wasn't that easy for her. But it will certainly warm your heart with a big and powerful message that we don't really need much to be happy.

Sally Hawkins was absolutely great. With that shy but ready smile and wondering eyes. Although I felt kind of sorry for the way they portrayed her husband. Not sure if he was as brute in real life as they made him. Not that I know, of course, but it felt too much (and he looked smiley enough in the documentary bits). Also, I'd say the editing was not as smooth as it could have been so felt rather amateurish overall, but maybe that was intentional.

Although shot in Canada, and although it is about a Canadian, I don't like affixing the term Canadiana to it. It is a Universal movie about the indomitable spirit that some people possess even when faced with horrendous turns of fate. Sally Hawkins is incredibly good as Maud and Ethan Hawke does a superb job of playing Everett Lewis. Hawkins has the accents , the movements, the wry smile and the light that just won't stop shining. Hawke's performance is very nuanced: his character was an emotional cripple and he was violent, but we also know how much he loved and admired his wife. It was a time when dirt poor men asked for nothing, did whatever they must to survive and didn't allow expression of feelings in their lives. Many reviewers have called him "vile", but he could have been a miner, for example, anywhere in the world as easily as a fish seller in Nova Scotia in 1930. I think Ethan Hawke did an amazing job of capturing that man. It has great cinematography, excellent score and a minimalist script that allows, through actual superb acting, to get to know a pair of characters in a movie like never before. Don't miss this one!!

When you are compelled to write a review, and you realise this is your first ever review of a film, you then understand the impact that a true classic has.

Sally Hawkins, Ethan Hawke, well done! If you want to sit down to a less than fast, but utterly embracing film about life's journey, and how individuals are valued, how they react to outside pressures and put their whole world at risk, then this is the film for you .

Simply.. Brilliant.

For me, this is the reason I go to the movies. Always in the expectation that when I walk out of the theater I simply will not be touching the ground. This does not happen frequently, but with "Maudie" the magic occurred. An amazing story eloquently told. Sally Hawkins is superb, touching and profoundly human. Ethan Hawke is at his best. There is a believable chemistry between these battered beings. When they do take flight, they soar over this crude grandiose landscape so beautifully captured on film.

It's early, but the award community have a sure bet in this unforgettable gem.

I think Sally Hawkins was great in this year's The Shape of Water. I understand why she's getting attention for it and I think she would be a fine nominee. But really, there's no question in my mind that it's her performance in Maudie that is the much more impressive overall. She gives a career-best turn here, a completely internal performance that could have been all showy, broad theatrics had a lesser actress gotten the part. She's absolutely amazing and in a fair world would be getting nominated (if not winning) for this work. Ethan Hawke is also fantastic, showing that he can really shine in character parts like this.