“Helen Mirren broke her rule of never playing terminally ill patients to support me as a first-time female director.” And with a name like that on her side, Kate Winslet has a head start on her debut behind the camera with Goodbye JuneChristmas drama available on Netflix. But that wasn’t his only ace up his sleeve. This is demonstrated by an ensemble cast of amazing actors – Toni Collette, Johnny Flynn, Andrea Riseborough, Timothy Spall and Winslet herself – and a screenplay capable of balancing drama and humor signed by Joe Anders, the director’s twenty-two-year-old son with Sam Mendes.
“I knew he wrote, but I didn’t expect him to be so good on the first reading. He was inspired by my mother’s death in 2017: he took that emotional inspiration and created an imaginary one,” recalls Winslet. “Initially I just wanted to produce it and play one of the sisters. Then I realized I couldn’t let it go. It felt too personal. I wanted my son to stay involved. It was wonderful to have him on set.”
The film is set just before Christmas, when matriarch June’s unexpected health problem throws four adult siblings and their exasperating father into chaos as they grapple with complicated family dynamics and possible loss. A story that the actress felt was her own to the point of making her feel ready to tackle her first directorial. “Over the past decade, directors like Danny Boyle and Frances Lee, along with some of the crew, often told me I thought like a director and asked me when I was going to make the big move,” Winslet recalls.
“When he arrived Goodbye JuneI felt surprisingly ready. I didn’t want to direct something until I was sure I could support the actors in such a sensitive and funny story. They needed to feel protected and I felt ready to create that environment for them.” The result is a deeply emotional film, but also full of comic interludes that is part of a long tradition of English dramedies.
“For me the tone is a cross between Secrets and lies e Four weddings and a funeral. It has that typically British beat – confides the director – Humor was fundamental. When faced with a loss, absurd moments or involuntary jokes happen. Spall’s character uses irony because he cannot accept losing his wife after 50 years of being together. Toni Collette’s character is also extraordinary: she’s a familiar figure, someone you might have actually met. We are always looking for versions of ourselves in the stories we see at the cinema.”
A story in which it will be easy for the public to see themselves. “I hope – says Winslet – that it gives people the courage to have conversations that they would otherwise never have the courage to have with their loved ones. Love is precious and we never know how much time we have left.”
Manuela Santacatterina
