I loved Blue Jasmine, but I will not be able to watch it again for quite some time. Though it is wildly entertaining and impeccably made, it is not a particularly easy film to sit through, with its harsh tone and difficult subject matter. Nevertheless, it is a stunning addition to Woody Allen’s already impressive oeuvre.
The film stars Cate Blanchett as “Jasmine French,” a spoiled New York socialite whose luxurious existence comes crashing down about her ears when her husband (Alec Baldwin) is unmasked as a philandering fraud. Depressed and destitute, she moves to San Francisco to stay with her sister “Ginger” (Sally Hawkins) and attempts to rebuild her shattered life, though her delusions, pretensions, and fondness for fabrication cannot stay buried for long.
At first glance, it seems like typical Allen fare – a statement which, I should add, should be considered a compliment, not an insult. It quickly becomes apparent, though, that there’s something different happening here. This movie feels like a glorious throwback to Crimes and Misdemeanors-era Allen, with all the delicious darkness of that film coupled with a newfound sense of cruel, almost shocking honesty.
Everyone in the cast is at their best, from the fragile but feisty Hawkins to Bobby Cannavale as charming thug “Chili.” However, it’s clear from the get-go that this is Blanchett’s party. She is in top form here, taking us through her character’s descent into madness without a shred of self-consciousness or vanity. Though it is a role made mostly of extremes, she never takes it too far, exercising the utmost restraint without sacrificing truth.
All in all, Blue Jasmine is flawless, and if Blanchett does not win the Oscar for Best Actress, something is deeply wrong with the Academy voters – though I’d argue that the fact that the movie didn’t make it onto the Best Picture list implies that there’s already a problem. Here’s hoping that the voters make up for their error by giving the movie at least one of the accolades it deserves.
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