CAN YOU EVER FORGIVE ME? Trailer
Melissa McCarthy is the latest comedian to tone down the laughs and flex her drama skills, taking on a writer-turned-forger in Can You Ever Forgive Me?.
Based on the memoir of the same name by Lee Israel, the film picks up Israel’s life as her book sales dwindle, leaving her desperate to find a new source of income. She turns, rather oddly, to letter forgery, making up salacious correspondences from famous figures and selling them for a tidy sum. The scam turns out to be a success, and while the scheme isn’t one that immediately attracts attention, eventually the illegal activity does catch up with her.
McCarthy probably isn’t the first person you’d think of to play a down-on-their-luck writer, but we all know it’s easier for comedians to make the jump to drama than vice versa. And it’s not like she’s never done dramedy before. Her breakout role in The Gilmore Girls required her to walk that line frequently and more recently films like St. Vincent have kept the muscles fresh. So while she has become famous for slapstick comedy, the sad and caustically funny Israel should be well within her capabilities.
The film itself is helmed by Marielle Heller and serves as her follow-up to The Diary of a Teenage Girl. That debut really put her on the map, and Can You Ever Forgive Me? will be a nice measure of her staying power.
Can You Ever Forgive Me? is directed by Marielle Heller and stars Melissa McCarthy and Richard E. Grant. It will be released in the US on October 19th, 2018. Further release dates are not currently known.
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