Paul Schrader is raving about Andrea Riseborough’s incredible work in the underseen indie gem “To Leslie.” As he should be. I hadn’t even realized that it was released a month ago. That’s how under-the-radar this small film has been.
Riseborough is maybe the most criminally underrated actress working today in American film. When I saw “To Leslie,” as part of my SXSW coverage back in March, I for sure thought that it would become some kind of career breakthrough for her. Sadly, the film has come and gone without much attention. That seems to be a given now with every Riseborough film. Why? She deserves better than this.
I had seen around a dozen films from this year’s Austin-based festival. None particularly stood out. The one competition title many seemed to rave about was “To Leslie,” an alcoholism drama that Riseborough absolutely elevated with raw feeling.
Based on a viral true story, Leslie actually won $169,000 in the lottery before irresponsibly wasting it all on expenses and addictions. Michael Morris’ drama seeks deep emotions and gets them thanks to the UK-born Riseborough and her ticking time-bomb of a performance, especially in the film’s stronger first half. There’s such passionate delivery in her work here, a sort of humanity that seeps through and makes Leslie feel like a fully lived-in character. This one comes straight from a very visceral, but vulnerable place in Riseborough’s psyche.
Known for her strong turns in “Nancy,” “Mandy” and “Possessor,” Riseborough will eventually get her due. It’s damn-near inevitable given the amount of talent she constantly displays on-screen. Her performance in “To Leslie” is one of the very best of the year.
Edward Berger seems to have settled on what comes next. His Lance Armstrong biopic, starring Austin Butler, is now holding casting calls, with production eyed for January.