Judy & Punch (2019)- BFI London Film Festival 2019

Review

105min

Genre:       Crime, Drama

Director:    Mirrah Foulkes

Cast:         Mia Wasikowska, Damon Herriman, Benedict Hardie…more

Writers:     Mirrah Foulkes

-Synopsis-

In puritanical 17th century England, an irresponsible father and manipulative self-centred puppeteer takes out his shortcomings and alcoholism on his wife and baby, only to face a reckoning when she returns with new purpose as an angel of ruthless justice and revenge, for him and the anarchic town which lauds him—in this subversive and dark feminist fairy-tale take on the traditional puppet show.

With female empowerment and gender politics now firmly on the filmmaking agenda worldwide, even before the #MeToo movement, everything from Shakespeare and English history to The Bible and epic fiction have been in the crosshairs of artists trying to tell resonant and often established stories from a distinct female perspective, and with revisionist contemporary echoes—so it’s probably about time that some questionable English folklore gets the unshackled subversive treatment. Enter Aussie screen star turned filmmaker Mirrah Foulkes to lead an all-Australian effort for her directorial debut, taking aim at a centuries-old English slapstick puppeteering tradition with a flavour of domestic violence for entertainment, using it as a dark and devilish fairy tale platform to tell an irreverent, subversive, righteous and outrageous folktale of revenge and emancipation.

Damon Herriman stars as 1600s master puppeteer ‘Punch’, a flamboyant and alcoholic self-centred husband and irresponsible father, slogging it out in the anarchic town of ‘Seaside’ with a popular marionette show, along with his dutiful wife and co-star ‘Judy’ (Mia Wasikowska) and their baby—all while fostering London-sized ambitions. When his abusive shortcomings lead to tragedy and leave her for dead away from the town, Punch spins his crimes into a sob story and enchants the puritanical locals—apart from the judicious local constable ‘Derrick’ (Benedict Hardie)—but fuelled by a lust for vengeance, Judy has other ruthless plans for her husband and the mob rule town that worships him, as she joins forces with fellow outcasts to deliver some long overdue righteous retribution.

Like many a historically-set indie drama of the past few years, this a rather modern tale with contemporary social echoes but dressed in period clothing—in this case some rather wonderful costume and production designs done on a budget to expertly re-create 17th century rural England in Australia—but unlike a lot of those films ‘Judy & Punch’ is something of a genre-bender which puts many narrative ingredients into its English renaissance cauldron.

Blending theatricality and ‘Commedia dell’arte’ puppetry with an element of mystery, and a classic revenge story with some witchy undertones, Foulkes forms a stylish and vibrant basis for a costume drama with modern energy, and some satirical and righteously angry social commentary. The writer/director is not only taking aim at the witch-hunting, woman-stoning  Jacobean Puritanism of 17th century England—a breeding ground for an irrationally violent and judgemental patriarchal society—but also saying something about its lingering echoes throughout the formerly Anglo-Saxon world today, not to mention reflecting alcoholism, discrimination and mob mentality.

‘Judy & Punch’ is also a good old fashioned tale of vengeful justice, populated by quirky characters and sprinkled with the odd bit of black humour but growing progressively darker as the story unfolds, stylistically sitting colourfully somewhere between the Brothers Grimm and Tim Burton—only without the fantastical elements or the intricate narrative. It’s also powered by a splendid classical score from François Tétaz which ranges from the quirky and whimsical to the dramatic and ominous, often taking a choral shape and occasionally combined with an anachronistic soundtrack of modern tunes and synth versions of classical standards.

Most importantly though this is a costume drama character piece, and an unconventional one at that, as Foulkes populates her anarchic 17th century town with an unruly idiosyncratic mob which adds colour and earthy charm to the narrative, balanced by the meek but just constable as the rational centre of the piece, while Wasikowska leads the story as its avenging moral heart—bringing her usual demure and stoic charm while adding a steely streak. But as her irresponsible, unreliable and criminal husband whose show and career take precedence above all else, it’s Damon Herriman as Punch who steals the show and gloriously eats up the scenery, proving that his talent for playing creepy ne’er-do-wells—as briefly seen in his turn as Charles Manson in Taratino’s latest film— is not a one off.

Two acts into the film and all the disparate ingredients seem to be adding up to a fascinating and hugely promising cinematic casserole, but rather than ramping up the tension towards an all-important conclusion, the story begins to unravel and actually lose momentum into the third act. With the crucial revenge element waning, we’re ultimately left with a rather abrupt, unimaginative and hugely unsatisfying conclusion, shifting away from a daring and stylish allegory and towards the convenient female empowerment vehicle it avoided being for two full acts.

Ultimately ‘Judy & Punch’ amounts to a daring and ambitious but slightly squandered debut from a nevertheless talented filmmaker. Despite the blend of tones which occasionally sees Foulkes handle some bleak subject matter with pantomime black comedy, no doubt ‘triggering’ certain audiences, it’s the third act and the deflating conclusion which takes the wind out of its sails and undermines the film’s credentials as an intricate revenge and justice flick. And yet there are so many fascinating elements, so much bolshie style, and plenty to say about the world we lived in then and do so now, that this it still an undoubtedly promising debut from its Aussie puppet master.

The Bottom Line…

Part period fairy tale of righteous revenge and justice, part cultural subversion piece and stylishly dressed social commentary, ‘Judy & Punch’ may take a major stumble in the third act and undo some of the fine work done in the first two, but there’s more than enough here to make for a daring and captivating little genre-bender with attitude, and a promising start to a directorial career.

‘Judy & Punch’ is out on the 22nd of November in UK cinemas.

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