If I Had Legs I'd Kick You

This is a very recent watch, and I will call out that it is the only thing from the Oscars write-up that was viewed at home. I went into "Legs" nearly blind, aside from knowing it was a "tough movie" about "depression." Consensus from word of mouth and the limited Rotten Tomatoes scroll I did months ago. I will not really reveal the core story beats here in case you, dear reader, are excited to see this...

What is true is "Legs" is focused on the central character's depression, on complex feelings about being a mom, and on being a totally dysfunctional adult in the modern era while taking care of a dysfunctional child. And while I know the filmmaker is basing this on her own experiences with her daughter (did a little research after the film closed), almost no one in this dramatized take acts like a real person. And knowing what occured in real-life vs what we see here: Real situations were all in San Diego where the filmmaker and her daughter traveled for a long bout with the medical system. The film is set in Montauk, where the filmmaker is from. This feels like a silly thing to call out, I know, but after watching this punishing experience (with one of the most truly irritating, unreal feeling child characters in movie history at its core), I promise, this detail actually is quite meaningful.

It helped me understand what events may have been pulled directly from their real experiences and what the filmmaker added for effect, to enhance the vibes, or that they pulled from other periods of their life and condensed them down to this period. I think she made a number of miscalculations on what would enhance her story of depression and motherhood and what would knock the audience out of the story. What could have been a very effective, autobiographical take on depression and being a mom is now something that feels fake, pointless, and irritating for the audience. And sure, there are a few interesting moments and lines sprinkled in. Rose Byrne is pretty great in this part. The material is far less effective and interesting than it wants to believe. - 3/10