When stories from her childhood years resurface, a woman starts questioning her memories of the summers she spent with her riding instructor and her running coach.
Feature debut from writer/director Jennifer Fox, who… dares! She unfolds the most sensitive part of her life non-linearly and puts it out there for you and me to witness. The Tale is a daring yet terrifying case study on memory and how and why it works the way it does. And even though you will not get a straight answer, it addresses age, its relation to the interpretation of time and space, and how everything affects, clouds, and intricately shapes the way we remember things. There have been amazing research topics out there on memory and existence and memory and personality if you want to retrospectively examine your life experiences or test how well you remember situations you claim you do.
Back to the film, Fox’s documentarian expertise shows straight away behind the camera, and Laura Dern’s raw talent shines in front of it. Next to her, Common, Jason Ritter, Elizabeth Debicki, Ellen Burstyn and the fantastic Jessica Sarah Flaum create amazing chemistry amongst themselves. My only dissatisfaction was the somewhat anticlimactic ending. I know it’s based on Fox’s actual experiences, but it’s not a biography, so it could perpetuate the already existing dramatisation of the confrontation part. But that’s just me.
HBO and all cast and crew deserve a huge round of applause. I usually go with “I hope you enjoy it,” but in this instance, I hope you understand it. Look back at your own life experiences and wonder what has driven you to become the person you are today and how often you have caught yourself lying to yourself.
Next time someone asks you: “You know who I am?!” ask them: “Who are you?”
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