Movie Review: 'What Maisie Knew' - Scott McGehee and David Siegel

It was kind of an accident that I saw this movie today. Literally, I have just come back from the film and I have so much to say I had to start immediately. My friend asked me which movie I wanted to watch today and the choice was down to either Blue Jasmine or Salinger. Out of the blue, he showed me the trailer for this movie and I was sold. What Maisie Knew is a beautiful and heart-breaking look from a little girl's perspective at the process of her parents' ugly divorce. I was blown away at the excellent performances from all of the cast, but especially by Onata Aprile who starred as Maisie, the titular character. I left the film feeling an almost overwhelming sense of loss and hope.

Theatrical Release Poster

The main emotions the audience experiences from the movie is a mixture of feeling like one of the adults and then feeling like Maisie herself. We are carefully balanced between knowledge and oblivion. The story really revolves around four adults in Maisie's life: her rock-n-roll mother, Susanna (Julianne Moore), her businessman father, Beale (Steve Coogan), her ex-nanny turned new stepmother, Margo (Joanna Vanderham), and her new stepfather, Lincoln (Alexander Skarsgard), whom Susanna has married for the sake of Maisie so the court will judge the custody more in her favour. In the end, both Susanna and Beale have dual custody of Maisie, but Beale's business commitments means he is constantly absent from both his young daughter and his newly-wed wife. Susanna also promptly departs to go on tour and leaves Maisie and Lincoln behind. It is actually Lincoln and Margo who end up mostly caring for the child and they seem to form a new and unconventional family unit of their own in the face of their other family's abandonment.

Maisie loves almost unconditionally. She definitely loves both her parents, despite their warped priorities and selfishness regarding her welfare. They also seem to love Maisie, but only when it is convenient for them. Maisie loves Margo who takes the time to ask her which clothes she would prefer wearing for the day, unlike Maisie's mother who is more concerned about being late. Both Maisie's parents are late in picking her up when it is their turn for custody. In the end, they both send their new respective spouses to pick up and take care of Maisie while they leave for their own devices. Maisie also loves Lincoln who, similar to Margo, actually takes the time to consider her as a fully-fledged person and less of a familiar accessory. Neither Lincoln nor Margo are happy about the lack of care Maisie's parents show her, although they express genuine love for the little girl herself. Lincoln's commentary on Susanna's undependable and flighty lifestyle is to inform her that "[she] doesn't deserve [Maisie]".

Maisie's abandonment broke my heart as she was ferried like some object between her quarrelling parents. The young actress is absolutely convincing in her role. At the same time, the directors did an excellent job of helping us understand the strange dynamics in this dysfunctional modern-day family and the unbelievable psychological trauma parents end up subjecting their children to just by their absence and subsequent lack of security. It's hard to see the perspective from Maisie's parents because you are often so disgusted by their lack of awareness for Maisie's wellbeing, Susanna even going as far as to leave her at the bar where Lincoln usually works and driving off in a taxi to go on tour without even checking if Lincoln is there or if Maisie is safely with a trusted adult.

In the end, the film captures a lot of the bittersweet emotions that life has to offer. There is an abundance of disappointment, but with it comes the little bursts of joy that are made even sweeter. The movie breaks your heart and then heals it over and over again. I recommend you to see this film, but to be prepared for quite an emotional onslaught. We are all Maisie and we are all adults - caught between the gulf between innocence and reality - and it's a terribly wonderful place to be.

 - Calista