Tully

May 4, 20185 min

Coming together with another person to create a human being is a pretty amazing thing. That feeling though starts to go away as that human being grows up and you realize you as a person you once were, no longer exists. Now for most that acceptance is something easy to deal with, but there are those who have difficulty with that transition. I have one child myself and I cherish her to the moon and back, but I have a special level of respect for anyone who has more than one, because man, does that look hard. There have been plenty of movies about parenthood but they never feel like the real thing, instead they feel like the ideal or overblown world of being a parent, until now. Diablo Cody (Juno) has always had a knack for writing stories that feel like life and with her newest “Tully” she really nails it.

Marlo (Charlize Theron) is an expecting mother with two kids already to look after, with one being more difficult than the other. While she appears to have it all together, cracks start to show when she has to deal with her son’s school telling her that he needs attention that they cannot provide. Her husband Drew (Ron Livingston) tries to help as much as he can, but work often gets in the way. It is because of that, Marlo’s brother Craig (Mark Duplass) offers to get them a night nurse so that his sister can get what resembles normal sleep patterns. While at first she refuses, but she eventually comes around and brings in Tully (Mackenzie Davis) and with that here comes the sun, as Marlo’s life becomes much more normal. It seems Tully isn’t just helping with the baby, she is also helping Marlo rediscover who she was and who she should become as she puts life in just the right perspective.

As I watched this film, a couple of things came to mind. One being that this, in my eyes is one of the better films about motherhood that I can remember and second, we are blessed to have Charlize Theron. With skills like Gary Oldman, she is a true chameleon as she completely blends into every environment she is exposed to, wether it’s a post apocalyptic waste land or suburbia, she simply brings her soul to every role. It is such a joy to watch her on screen, and together with writer Cody they seem to have some of their better moments together. The third spoke in this perfect wheel is Jason Reitman who returns to the director’s chair after four years  and some not-so-great work, but he slides back in to his familiar groove quickly. Separate they are all great, but together these three know how to put together a memorable movie. With “Tully” you can be sure you are going to laugh and even cry some, but you will also walk out with a new level of respect for people who have to run a household and manage to stay sane. Most of all though you will leave enjoying what you just saw as this trio delivers the goods and a movie you will want to share with your friends with kids.

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