"Vera Drake" (2004)

Imelda Staunton and Philip Davis in one of the many heart-wrenching scenes.

This as not an easy film to watch. there were many troublng scenes in which i wanted to help the characters. thatis the effect director Mike Leigh wants and acheives. it is a controversial subject, abortion, which needs to be delt with in the most careful manor. we see a cozy British family in the 1950s torn by the crime thier mother has been commiting for over 20 years. we feel that she justifies what she has done because of her reason behind it. the perfromances were brilliant especially that of Imelda Staunton who played Drake. it was facinating watching her performance. this is a very unique subject and i love the seemingly careless way it was handled. they did not make a huge deal about it; it just happened.

We see Vera Drake. the sweetest little plum of  woman with a "heart of diamond". she goes around cleaning houses, visiting elders and making them tea. everyone loves her. her son tailors suits, her daughter is as painfully shy as Laura in "The Glass Menagerie" and works as a lightbulb checker and the husband fixes automobiles. her whole family loves her dearly. she is a sincere and genuine mother and wife; and criminal. we see she has another job; helping girls. she does it once or twice a week for many years without her family knowing. she uses some soap, warm water, disinfectant and a rubber syringe. with her sweet and loving voice, she is able to calm the young women if in distress. a parallel story shows the daughter of an aristocrat that Staunton works for who was raped by her boyfriend. she gets a legal abortion and we are shown how that works. this young women is played wonderfully by Sally Hawkins. The daughter of Staunton gets engaged to another shy man that Staunton invited over a few times out of the goodness of her heart. they eventually become engaged. Then something happens. One of the girls she does gets a serious infection and nearly dies which acording to Stauton, never happens. after the girl has been saved, the mother is forced by the doctors to go to the police. there is a knock on the door. the family, including the husband's brother and sister in law are having a party in celebration of the new engagement and the pregnancy of the sister in law. the police are at the door taking Staunton under arrest. from that moment on Stauntons warm and assuring expresion is replaced by a resentful gaze of sorrow (seen in the picture below). the family is in disbelief and are positive it's a mistake; after all, she's a saint. but the find out through some of the most grueling and painful interrogation and coutroom sequences i have ever expirienced. they cant believe she has done this. the husband forgives her for the best reason: she did these acts out of the "goodness of her heart"-she didn't even take money.

That to me is the most frustrating thing. she did this to help people- not to cause any harm. she treated everyone with respect and when the police came, she fessed up completely and caused no trouble. she was so shocked that someone almost died because of her that she could hardly speak-just cry. her son could not forgive her because he would hear about it in the paper but never thought it was someone in thier own house. one of the greatest things about the film is Staunton's performance which did deserve the Oscar over Hilary Swank's for "Millin Dollar Baby". swank was good, but not THIS good. we felt for Vera. If only the judge knew what kind of person she was, maybe she would not be in as severe situation as she is now. The last line of the film has no importance. it's the last shot that is incredibly powerful. it shows the family, without Vera, sitting around the table without a sound; still in disbelief and shock about the prior events.

Academy Awards, USA
Year	Result	Award	Category/Recipient(s)
2005	Nominated	Oscar	Best Achievement in Directing Mike Leigh
			Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role Imelda Staunton
			Best Writing, Original Screenplay Mike Leigh