Judy: A Tortured Soul’s Last Few Months

I didn't know what to expect when I went to see "Judy," but I heard Renee Zellweger gave an AAW performance as the titular Judy Garland, so I went to see it.  The film was adapted from Peter Quilter's play, "End of the Rainbow."  The movie is about the last few months of Judy's life, and the poor woman was nearly in constant torture. The movie starts with young Judy Garland (Darci Shaw) on the set of "The Wizard of Oz."  She wants to be like other teenagers, but movie mogul Louis B. Mayer rules her with an iron fist.  He won't let her eat real food, gives her diet pills, and works her 17 hours a day without a break.  The Hollywood childhood traumatized her and she was irrevocably damaged.  The film depicts someone with a borderline personality disorder about as well as any that I can recall. In the last year of her life, Judy is a "has-been."  She's broke, there is an impending custody battle with her ex-husband, Sidney (Rufus Sewell), concerning her two children (not Lizza), and she's addicted to prescription drugs and alcohol.  Due to her unreliability, temper tantrums, etc., she can't get any bookings in the USA.  To try to get back on her feet financially so that she can keep custody of her children, she leaves them with Sidney for a five-week engagement in London, where she still has fans.  Unfortunately, things don't go well for her there. Although Zellweger conveys Judy's high anxiety well (I felt like reaching for a Xanax while watching her), I thought she was over-acting some of the time.  She will probably get nominated for an Academy Award, but I'll be surprised if she wins.  The film also has many musical numbers. Bottom Line: The film has a good screenplay, but it's so depressing I didn't enjoy it.  (I clicked my heels three times, but I still remained in my seat!)  It is, however, probably a must for Judy Garland or Renee Zellweger fans.