Before the closing credits start rolling, three words from a brief biographical postscript pierce the heart: “She was 47.”

What a talent! What a waste?

Focusing on the final months of her triumphant but troubled career, during which she was forced to embark on a five-week cabaret spot at The Talk of the Town in London in order to pay off or at the very least make a dent in her monumental debts, and flashing back to her gruelling contract under the monstrous management of MGM’s Louis B. Mayer, Judy is much more harrowing and heartbreaking than the glitzy trailer suggests.

Sure, there is a conveyor belt of catty one-liners and a sprinkling of songs. But what writer Tom Edge and director Rupert Goold have chosen to focus on is the mental, emotional and physical disintegration of a star on the slide, a star who is torn between hitting the road and hugging her kids.

It ends in tears. Mostly sad (I repeat: What a talent! What a waste?). But sometimes beautiful, as in one memorable scene when she consoles a loyal fan whose partner was jailed for the crime of homosexuality. Though said fan’s reciprocal show of support by standing up and completing the ending to Judy’s stumbling performance of Over The Rainbow is well-intentioned but cloying.

Renée Zellweger, on the other hand, is anything but.

This is not an impersonation, but a full-on character study complete with nervous tics and strained smiles which are rooted in pain and survival. Each word carrying the depth and soul of an opera. Each gesture a performance to her mostly adoring though latterly bread roll-tossing fans.

Pills and booze were the crutches she clung to for support. The former forced upon her from an early age. The latter the product of a star without family or professional support.

She is not alone on that front.

But as she asks her audience towards the end of the film, “You won’t forget me, will you?” The answer, thanks to this fine and moving drama adapted from Peter Quilter’s Olivier and Tony-nominated play End Of The Rainbow, is a resounding – if you think otherwise, you’re off your trolley!

Director: Rupert Goold
Writers: Tom Edge (screenplay by), Peter Quilter (based on the stageplay “End of the Rainbow” by)
Stars: Renée Zellweger, Jessie Buckley, Finn Wittrock
Peter Callaghan
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