Leslie (Andrea Riseborough) is a West Texas single mother struggling to provide for her son (Owen Teague) when she wins the lottery and a chance at a good life. But a few short years later the money is gone and Leslie is on her own, living hard and fast at the bottom of a bottle as she runs from the world of heartbreak she left behind. With her charm running out and with nowhere to go, Leslie is forced to return home to her former friends Nancy and Dutch (Allison Janney, Stephen Root). Unwelcome and unwanted by those she wronged, it’s a lonely motel clerk named Sweeney (Marc Maron) who takes a chance when no one else will. With his support, Leslie comes face to face with the consequences of her actions, a life of regret, and a second chance to make a good life for her and her son.
Q-tips say: Yes, we did enjoy this movie. This movie might not be an easy film to watch, but viewers won’t be able to look away.
Leslie – Andrea Riseborough’s incredible performance is one of the year’s best in a film that avoids the trappings of unforgivable misery and instead draws our empathy into the real struggle of coming back from addiction. To be sure, Leslie is her own worst enemy, but she has a disease and there’s still time, maybe just enough time, for her to find the path to recovery. We hold deep hope for that redemption.
Lead actress Andrea Riseborough was not even mentioned for an Academy Award even if she had one of the greatest performances of many others. Perhaps she was not considered because she is not African American or Hispanic or Asian. So sad.