An intimate portrayal of the relationship between one of greatest artists of the 20th century, L.S. Lowry and his unhappy and controlling mother, Elizabeth, whom he lived with all his life.
"A Film By Adrian Noble"
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Peter McGinn
4/2/2020
8 / 10
It doesn't always work, but I figure and movie with Timothy Spall in it is worth a look. Mrs. Lowry and Son is one of those slowly paced movies that you have to let roll over you and be patient. The two characters are not always likable and may let you down in small ways, as they let each other down, but I was till rooting for them.
L.S. Lowry as presented here and presumably in his life was a very complex character. I liked how he was playful with neighborhood children and poetic when describing as a painter the scenes and places he has seen. But the other side of him is the rent collector trudging around town, and the timid soul who tries in vain to impress his mother and gain her love. And I don't have reason to doubt this depiction of him, as I have since read, for example, that in real life he refused several awards later in life, including the royal OBE because, his thought was, what would be the point since his mother was now gone.
I can't say his artwork impresses me, with his matchstick men and all, but I leave that to those who know art. His artistic sensibilities were grounded in the harshness of life for the working classes during the Industrial Revolution and in towns such as Salford, one of the setting sources of the gritty and realistic British soap opera Coronation Street. Well, realistic for decades until it transformed into an American soap opera due to pressure from East Enders and Emmerdale. But being grounded in that harsh atmosphere, it seemed symbolic to see the artist walk through a gorgeous scene of verdant green fields and trees, reach the top of a slope, and and then paint a cluster of squatting factories. Yes, a different sort of artist.
One other aspect of Spall's performance occurred to me. It reminded me of a couple of his Mike Leigh films, such as Secrets and Lies, where he gives a measured, restrained performance all the way through only to explode as an actor for an emotionally powerful scene near the end. Worth watching, but not for when you are in the mood for a lively movie.
As a side note, I was intrigued to learn that one of my favorite pop songs ever, status Quo’s Pictures of Matchstick Men, was a tribute to Lowry. Gosh, I will have to watch this film again.
This plods along in an almost Alan Bennett-esque fashion. It doesn't ever catch fire, but is well written and does seem to accurately reflect the routine and repetitive way of life for both Lowry and his largely bedridden mother. The principals gel well, and we do get a sense of what their relationship might have actually been like in a relatively poverty-stricken industrial Lancashire in the 1930s when Lowry acted as a rent collector. Once you get an understanding of the mundanity of this existence it helps make a little sense of both why it took so long for his art to become recognised (including by his mother) and then as to why it actually did.
