Cast: Michelle Williams, Anna Friel, Kyle MacLachlan, Oliver Milburn, Trudie Styler, Marianne Denicourt
Director: Sandra Goldbacher
Producer: Finola Dwyer
Screenplay: Sandra Goldbacher, Laurence Coriat
Cinematography: Denis Crossan
Music: Adrian Johnston
U.S. Distributor: Samuel Goldwyn Films
As a man looking in from the outside, I have never ceased to be amazed by the rhythms of the female friendship, especially one that has evolved from the pre-teen or early teen years. Friendships between women are entirely different from those between men (or those between men and women). They are closer, more intimate, and with deeper emotional bonds. They are also subject to greater stresses and are more likely to blow apart, leaving behind scarred wreckage that can never be re-assembled. Me Without You offers a clear-eyed chronicle of a female friendship that is more complex and honest than anything represented in a Hollywood film.
Close friendships that persist over a long period of time must be re-invented every so often. As the participants change, so too must the things that bind them together. Women of age 30 might be as close as they were at age 13, but the nature of their friendship will have undergone several major shifts. Any lasting relationship, regardless of whether it is platonic or romantic, must be dynamic to survive. A static relationship is either not very deep or is doomed to fail in the long-term. Presenting the shifting currents of a girl/girl friendship is Me Without You's chief strength, and, in doing so, it illustrates that not all friendships remain healthy and mutually satisfactory.
The movie opens in 1973 London, where best friends Holly (Ella Jones) and Marina (Anna Popplewell) are finding ways to spend the long summer days. Despite their differences, Holly and Marina are inseparable... and there are plenty of differences. Holly is the "clever" one, whose looks and self-confidence don't match the strength of her mind. She's an only child and lives with conservative parents. Marina, on the other hand, is pretty, uninhibited, and not Holly's intellectual equal. Despite her wildness, however, she's actually vulnerable, with her outward boldness hiding a deep insecurity. Her pill-popping mother (Trudie Styler) and father (Nicky Henson) are separated. Marina is clearly the dominant one in the relationship; Holly follows along, at times almost in awe.
The scene shifts to 1978. Both girls are now in their late teens and into the punk rock scene. Holly (now played by Michelle Williams) is as much of a wallflower as ever, and Marina (Anna Friel) is even more brash and outgoing. One night at a party, while Marina is doing heroin, Holly loses her virginity to Marina's older brother, Nat (Oliver Milburn). This creates a rift between the friends. Four years later, while at college, they both have affairs with the same professor (Kyle MacLachlan). Each is hurt to learn of the other's "betrayal" of sleeping with "her" man. Meanwhile, Nat makes an appearance, and it's clear that he's as besotted with Holly as she is with him. But a jealous Marina pushes them away from each other, and Nat goes to France to patch things up with his actress girlfriend.
The relationship between Holly and Marina starts as a typical teenage friendship before developing into something dark and unhealthy. In the early years, the two share everything and are as necessary to one another as oxygen. As they grow older and Marina's dominance strengthens, the downward spiral begins. Holly, dissatisfied with her physical appearance, is envious of Marina's sexiness and easy way with men. Marina, on the other hand, resents Holly's intellectual superiority and inner stability. Jealousy gradually poisons what exists between them. Marina, not wanting Holly to have a close relationship with her brother, works to keep the two apart, even though it's apparent that their feelings for one another are genuine. By the time the movie has reached its third act in the late '80s, these two women are together simply because they have been close for so long that the idea of splitting up seems unthinkable. Yet their friendship is dysfunctional. The bonds between them are rotten, and the situation has become suffocating. As Holly comments, they never have fun with each other any more. All they do is fight.
Writer/director Sandra Goldbacher (The Governess) avoids most of the pitfalls and clichés that could have reduced this to the level of just another chick flick. (Her one arguable mistake is a brief epilogue set in 2001 which, although providing a sense of closure, feels tacked-on and unnecessary.) Goldbacher's honesty is unsparing. Although the script's sympathies lie more with Holly than Marina, Me Without You shows the good and bad in both girls.
The acting, especially by the leads, is strong. British thespian Friel and American Williams mesh perfectly. Friel's role is more flashy (she gets to wear punk gear and frequently change her hair color), but Williams' part may be more the more demanding of the two. Far removed dramatically from her "Dawson's Creek" character, Williams has no trouble with the British accent or the wild emotional swings exhibited by Holly. Friel embraces the intensity of Marina. And the non-sexual chemistry is unmistakable. Elsewhere, Oliver Milburn has a supporting role as Marina's moody, soulful brother. And Kyle MacLachlan, playing the charming lecturer both girls fall for during their college days, manages to look boyish even in his 40s.
Too few dramas these days have an arc such as the one traversed by Me Without You. The story works because it's about ordinary people - women you wouldn't look at twice if you passed them on the sidewalk. The writing is smart and the acting is top-notch. The period details from the '70s and '80s add color and texture, but this is a film in which the characters arrest our attention more than the setting. Me Without You offers more insight into the experience of female bonding that dozens of Hollywood features about the same subject. (In particular, I'm thinking of the likes of Crossroads and Ya-Ya.) Touching and sincere, this film deserves to be seen by anyone who is searching for a movie about compelling characters in real circumstances.
© 2002 James Berardinelli