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To be honest, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but, since it had been well received and since it was available on Disney+, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, there is no denying that, at last, Melissa McCarthy delivered a really strong performance after a career filled with hysterical characters in some rather underwhelming comedies. On top of that, with Richard E. Grant, they couldn’t have found a more perfect choice to play her messed-up and yet wildly entertaining sidekick. Seriously, together, they were quite fun but there was also something really genuine about this relationship which made them quite compelling to watch. Concerning the story, it was definitely some intriguing material but, to be honest, I’m not sure that Marielle Heller really made the most of it though. I mean, it was always interesting and entertaining but the way it was handled was just too predictable. Basically, they went through all the major events that occurred after Lee Israel lost her job and started to have some real financial issues and how she eventually got caught by the FBI and it was as much fun as it was reading about this case on Wikipedia. For example, something I was wondering during the movie and which wasn’t discussed was the number of letters she forged and I was flabbergasted that the number was 400 in 2 years. In my opinion, it shows how shaddy the world of memorabilia collecting actually is. Indeed, there is no way that all these professionals didn’t detect earlier that there was something fishy about this woman who was coming up with some new letters seemingly out of nowhere on such high volumes and rapid tempo. Another aspect that wasn’t explored was who Lee Israel was before she started with her scheme. Eventually, the way they focused on telling this story was effective but, by sticking so much to these predictable facts, it never became mind blowing though. Anyway, to conclude, in spite of its flaws, it turned out to be a solid watch, easily the best movie starring Melissa McCarthy, and I think it is definitely worth a look.
7/10
