For a movie so highly rated all around, this was surprisingly elusive. I couldn't find it at the video store back when I lived near one, and I'm pretty sure it wasn't offered via Netflix as soon as I wanted. Late to the DVD party, perhaps?
Cynthia (Brenda Blethyn) hates her life as a middle-aged London box factory worker and mother to Roxanne (Claire Rushbrook), whose surliness seems immature for a woman about to turn 21. Cynthia never leaves the flat except to work or shop and rarely hears from her nearby brother, Maurice (Timothy Spall), because of an even more strained relationship between her and his wife, Monica (Phyllis Logan). But this predictably bleak life takes an unforeseen turn when Cynthia gets a call from Hortense (Marianne Jean-Baptiste), an older daughter she had given up immediately for adoption, whose adoptive parents are now dead and who's curious about her. At first, Cynthia wants no further contact, but then she warms up to the idea of connecting with someone who truly welcomes her -- albeit not letting the rest of her family in on it right away.
One twist: Hortense is half-Black. Both of them hesitate to believe they're closely related, partly because she's dark for it and partly because Cynthia never looked at her upon giving birth (and, yes, slept around as a teen). Among the characters, evident racism take the form of the assumption of segregation rather than stereotypes or a sense of superiority: When Hortense comes to an otherwise homogeneous gathering, the host thinks she got the wrong address. Cynthia certainly doesn't see Hortense as a lesser by the time the latter says she's an optometrist.
Spall actually gets top billing, presumably for relative star power. (Nice not to see him playing a hideous creep like in more recent outings.) Despite being basically tangential to the main plot, Maurice does dominate several scenes, especially those set at his photography studio. I suspect that some of them are the principal reason some viewers consider this a comedy-drama instead of a sheer melodrama.
Those scenes aren't the only tangents, BTW. Most of the 142 minutes are dedicated to a slice of life rather than plot progression. Still, it makes sense to examine more than Cynthia and Hortense. As the title indicates, there isn't just one secret or lie.
S&L received many awards and nominations, yet I'm not surprised it didn't take home any Oscars. It's rather simple and quaint by American standards and requires patience if you don't find it all that funny or tragic. I like it best when it gets heartwarming, which happens only so often and toward the end. I put it a little ahead of the same year's Shine but a little behind the other Best Picture nominees.
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