Anna Campbell should give the screenplay more lyrics.
“Nora” is a really small movie that has a much better character study and consistency than what The Weeknd provided for us in “Hurry Up Tomorrow” and what Shakespeare’s star crossed lovers provided for us in “Juliet & Romeo.” To help the main singer ease her problems, we’re given music videos, some of them seem flimsy and others are very stylish. The best are when one of them looks like it’s from the 60s, when another look like it’s from the 90s, and when she dances with naked manikins.
The movie should be an examination of a former musician settling for a suburban life as a single mother and also questions on could have been within her life. But most of the movie sells itself short and doesn’t delve as deep as it should in the subject matter. Anna Campbell writes, directs, and stars as the title former musician named Nora, whose husband Leo (Max Lesser) is on a 6-week business trip, and must take care of her little girl Sadie (Campbell’s real life daughter Sophie Mara Baaden).
There are many challenges she must endure in her new suburban life, such as PTA meetings and being a room parent, but there are also some benefits like a friendship between her and Sadie’s new teacher Adam (Nick Fink from “Judas and the Black Messiah”). And of course, it all has to be awkward moments for her, which is very common for people being new to this sort of thing.
The most exhausting thing about “Nora” is how Sadie has to act all bratty and always gets at her mother’s throat. I think this has to do with Nora’s mother Terry (Lesley Ann Warren) indulging her during their visits together (like how the old lady offers her a bagel instead of the dinner she provided), and Nora is able to criticize her for the directions it could take. So, I’m glad there’s a cause and effect for that.
IMDB labels the film as a comedy, but I think it’s more into the drama and music than it is in the humor. I suppose the awkward moments constitute as humor, but I was more interested in the heartbreaking moments the main heroine has with herself and her daughter, who are nicely acted by Campbell and Baaden. And the main heroine should also deal with her new school life, and what comes out of it, as I feel these scenes are underwritten.
I’m sure most of you haven’t heard of Campbell nor would you have recognized her name as guest roles on shows like “Veronica Mars” or “NCIS: Los Angeles,” but directs “Nora” and all the music videos presented here with a sense of nostalgia and emotion. And she also acts with more sincerity and heart than what The Weeknd provided for us last week. And I’m going to move on before I turn this review into an additional hate speech against “Hurry Up Tomorrow.”
There are qualities of “Nora” that make the film worth watching, but Campbell needs to do more than just give us music videos. She should have pushed her character to new limits and overcome whatever formulas she throws at her own character. There’s a lot of potential presented here, but it should study itself further.
Premiering on VEEPS This Saturday
