Can You Ever Forgive Me?

To answer the film's question, yeah, we can forgive you.

Depends on what we're forgiving you for.

(Sees the movie.)

Let's work out the forgiveness part.

What am I talking about? I'm talking about the biopic Can You Ever Forgive Me? Directed by Marielle Heller, it's based on the memoirs of Lee Israel, played here by Melissa McCarthy. Lee Israel wrote a few biographies, but they never caught on. At the start of the film, Lee's alcoholism and abrasiveness gets her fired from her desk job. Her agent, Marjorie (Jane Curtin), is at the end of her rope with her. She'll certainly get evicted. And her kitty, Jersey, is sick.

Lee procures a letter from Fanny Brice and sells it to a collector. This is after she forges another paragraph on it. She then forges a few more letters from literary giants like Noel Coward, Marlene Dietrich and Dorothy Parker and sells them. Her partner-in-crime is Jack Hock (Richard E. Grant), a flamboyant grifter. The scheme makes them comfortably rich. At least, until a few gaffes brings the scheme down.

Lee's abrasiveness doesn't win her any fans. But McCarthy's performance shows Lee for the sad, lonely lady she is. She's socially awkward rather than simply uptight. Her fondness for Jersey helps her case. Her vet bills are what inspire her to do this drastic action. By the end, even when she expresses no remorse for fraud, we're pleased that she's happy in life.

As Hock, Richard E. Grant is a delightful smooth talker. He's a great extrovert to Lee's introvert. His dialogue is more often than not hilarious. He's likable even if he's a bit careless. He retains his audience sympathy even after one tragic mistake near the end. There's good makeup work depicting his physical appearance, especially his late stage AIDS at the end.

The screenplay by Nicole Holofcener and Jeff Whitty is a great asset. It goes into great detail of how Lee and Jack pulled off their scheme.  You'll feel bad for the poor dealers who get duped. It's so intricate you'll wonder how it falls apart. When it does, you'll feel the pressure as the Feds come in. You'd only be lost if you don't know who much of the impersonated ones are.

Can You Ever Forgive Me? is a captivating biopic of a literary fraud. It's a strong story about flawed people. It's about a woman who comes out of her shell. It's a deeply-layered tale that'll leave you pondering its title question. Honestly, some people have done worse than her, so I might forgive her.