Marlene (Suzanne Clément) and Samantha (Paloma Kwiatkowski) are mother-daughter con artists in Sitting on the Edge of Marlene. Sam (husband/father) is in jail after getting caught.
Marlene and Samantha team up with Freddy (Callum Keith Rennie), though Marlene says this is only temporary.
Marlene gets beat up in a con. She gets addicted to her "happy pills." She spirals as Samantha tries to pick up the pieces.
Samantha, looking for some stability, is drawn to Drew (Dakota Daulby), who spends time in a church inside a roller rink.
Marlene yearns for the return of her husband. There is uncertainty over whether Sam is out and where he is.
The question in films such as Sitting on the Edge of Marlene is whether the deterioration of a character is entertaining in itself. This didn't work for me in Hello, Destroyer. Clément gives a remarkable performance. Her physical presence is rather notable, various angles and positions. Brave on multiple levels. Kwiatkowski gives a solid amount of angst, wanting to get away yet feels committed to her mother.
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Though Marlene is the focal point, Samantha takes most of the screen time in the second half of the film.
Ana Valine, as writer and director, gives us characters where we care about them and how their lives might turn out. The lack of light tells a dark story about deterioration and despair. Valine also uses the Vancouver area well with plenty of cloudy skies in the 2014 film.
Valine also portrays scenarios that seem real but stem from the imagination of the primary characters.
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Sitting on the Edge of Marlene starts out with some cool cons. More of those and less of the despair would have helped the film. That said, this film goes a good job of telling said deterioration. Suzanne Clément is worth the price of admission just for her performance.
Sitting on the Edge of Marlene is available in the United States on Amazon Prime Video.
video credit: YouTube/Movieclips Indie
photo credit: Sitting on the Edge of Marlene film
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