In Stephen Frears’ Philomena, an aging woman (Judi Dench) attempts to locate the whereabouts of her son, who she was forced to give up for adoption while living in a convent in her teens. A political journalist (Steve Coogan) plays the man who is given the task of helping her track the long-lost son down.
First of all, the picture that is painted of Catholic nuns is not a pretty one. It is through her forced confinement in a convent that Philomena (Dench) is forced to let go of the toddler son who she adores. This part of the film is told in flashbacks to around sixty years prior to the current events of the movie. The nuns in this film are seen as unwavering, uncompromising, old biddies who inflict a sense of guilt on their helpless victims. Philomena, who has had her child out of wedlock and at a tender age is made to believe she is a sinner and evil for her procreation. Their is a scathing critique of Catholicism in this film and its ultra-conservative views especially in the present day setting, through the eyes of journalist Martin Sixsmith (Coogan).
Coogan comes along and decides after some hesitation to agree to investigate the location of Philomena’s son. His investigation takes them to America where there are various surprising twists, turns and new discoveries made. I won’t give away what they are but there are heart-warming and bittersweet elements to the story.
The scene in which Philomena’s son is seen being driven away from the convent while she helplessly looks on is filmed in a powerful way that evokes heart-wrenching empathy and despair. In the present day part of the story, the characterization of the two principal leads, Dench and Coogan, are undeniably visceral and powerful. This is a performance-based movie and an interesting character study. It is also one of the most finely-acted films of the year.
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