Vera Drake (2004)

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Vera Drake (2004) – M. Leigh

Britain in 1950 seems perfectly recreated in Mike Leigh’s sombre look at a cleaning woman’s desire to “help young girls out”.  Imelda Staunton justifiably won the BAFTA and was nominated for an Oscar as Vera Drake who maternally comforts many poor women by inducing miscarriages.  She’s warm and matter-of-fact despite the whole thing being illegal – but that latter fact causes everything to come crashing down.  Although director Mike Leigh (best known for Secrets and Lies, 1996, perhaps) is overtly showing us how an anti-choice political climate makes things difficult for poor women (even as rich women are shown to have other ways to solve the same problem, quasi-legally, in subplot with Sally Hawkins), the film succeeds beyond making didactic points due to the commitment of the actors and the perfect mise-en-scene.  Leigh’s way of working with the actors, involving up to six months of rehearsals and complete biographical backstories to their characters – plus a fully improvised script – must have contributed.  In fact, apparently none of the other actors knew that the film was about abortion until their characters found out – lending genuine surprise/shock to the proceedings.  An increasingly difficult watch but important to consider.