Some movies are difficult to watch. Not because they’re bad but because they drag you into a world of intense sadness and misery. Precious is one example of this; A good movie which is a chore to sit through because it’s so unrelentingly morose. Helen is one of those films.
Ashley Judd gives a powerful performance as a woman suffering from the ravages of clinical depression. Writer/Director Sandra Nettelbeck did research into the subject and has created a deeply disturbing look at the effects which the illness has, not only on the afflicted person but her family as well.
Helen (Ashley Judd) seems to have an ideal life. She is a professor of music theory and a talented pianist. Her husband David (Goran Visnjic, formerly of ER) is a handsome lawyer. She has a pretty daughter Julie (Alexia Fast) who is an excellent baseball player. They live in a nice house; have lots of friends and a dog.
All this idyllic serenity crumbles when Helen’s long buried depression comes out of remission with a vengeance. Suddenly, she is no longer able to function at work and her home life falls apart. David struggles to deal with the dark changes in his wife but soon finds himself overwhelmed and lashing out at the victim with misdirected anger. Even Julie flees from all this to go and stay with Helen’s ex-husband and Julie’s birth father. The perfect life crumbles completely.
Helen finds a kindred spirit in Mathilda (Lauren Lee Smith), one of her music students who is also a psychiatric patient in the same ward where Helen spends some time. Helen decides to spare her family any further torment and moves in with Mathilda. A strange yet poignant bond develops between the two damaged women who are relieved to find someone who can actually understand what they’re going through.
The relationship between the two women is reminiscent of the Winona Ryder/Angelina Jolie relationship in Girl, Interrupted. Although Helen is not as well done as that film, it is a relentless look at a serious mental problem. What makes Helen so hard to sit through is that it pulls the viewer totally into the devastated lives of the people involved. We watch Helen’s fall in detail and we observe her husband’s angst at not being able to do anything to help.
Judd does an excellent job bringing the tormented Helen to life. Script-wise, there’s nothing too insightful or informative about the illness but Judd manages to turn what could have been a standard disease-of-the-week film into gripping drama. Fast is charmingly innocent yet spirited as teenage daughter Julie, who just wants things to go back to the way they were. Goran is less effective as David. He doesn’t seem as concerned as the character is meant to be and is more convincing when he lashes out.
The real scene stealer here is Lauren Lee Smith as the disturbed Mathilda. She runs the gauntlet from concerned friend to depressed loner to chaotic mental patient. Underneath it all, Mathilda is needy for company but is afraid to connect with anyone because she knows most people can’t deal with her problem. She has brief dalliances with anonymous guys she meets. When no one else is available, she rescues a puppy for company. Helen fills a need in Mathilda. But what happens when Helen starts to improve and Mathilda sees her only friend slipping away from her?
Nettelbeck retains a consistently grim tone of desperation. You’ll probably be yearning for a touch of relief after the first hour. A bit of humor here and there might make this a more tolerable experience. If you’re in the mood to be depressed, this is the perfect film for you.
DVD Bonus Features
The extras consist of interviews with the cast members and the director.
"Helen" is on sale August 10, 2010 and is rated R. Drama. Written and directed by Sandra Nettelbeck. Starring Alexia Fast, Ashley Judd, Goran Visnjic, Lauren Lee Smith.
