Nelly

Canadian writer-director Anne Émond’s biographical film about Nelly Arcan, the Quebecois prostitute-turned-novelist who based her books on her own experiences in the sex trade and committed suicide in 2009 at age 36, tries to communicate Arcan’s complexity by treating the various aspects of her life in a fractured form. Employing different wardrobes and hairstyles, actress Mylène Mackay displays enormous versatility as the film repeatedly shifts from one element of Arcan’s personality to another by juxtaposing episodes portraying her as a street-smart escort-for-pay called Cynthia, a drug-addicted woman battling with a snarky boyfriend, intensely serious writer Nelly, and an alluring celebrity socialite. Scenes of her as a child suggest that Arcan’s psychological problems stemmed from a desperate need for love and validation that persisted throughout her life, but Émond refuses to explain her subject’s multifaceted persona through any such simple diagnosis. In theory, that decision is admirable, emphasizing how elusive she was, but this approach also leaves Nelly feeling disjointed, often frustratingly so. Thoughtful rather than titillating—despite the subject matter—this is a challenging portrait of a controversial figure in Canadian literature. A strong optional purchase. (F. Swietek)