The story of a fictional Irish actress, Katherine O’Dell, circa 1950s – 60s, as told by her daughter. Think Maureen O’Hara, but she was – hush! don’t tell! – actually born in England. There are many questions here. Her daughter’s dad is who? And Norah, the narrator and daughter, has her hands full but it is a labor of love.
So Norah grows up in the shadow of her mother, which doesn’t particularly bother her. No fangirl, she. She has her own path to follow, after all. But her mother’s path is circuitous. A couple of well-received movies, but mostly stage work, and mostly by her own choice. As her star fades, Norah steps in to protect her mother, who is falling victim to alcoholism, but more importantly, mental illness. Norah has her own issues – after all, who is really her dad? Katherine’s not about to tell. And then when her mother clearly goes off the deep end, and gets, as they say in Britain, sectioned, she is left to put together the pieces as best she may.
In many ways, this is an echo of the infamous Joan Crawford biopic as told by her daughter (no metal hangers!), but by a daughter who always, though she has her own life to live, looks back with an equal mixture of frustration and love. Old school Hollywood fans will enjoy this, and it really does ring true. Now can we review the Judy Garland – Liza Minelli situation?