‘Morvern Callar’: Samantha Morton’s defining role
Morvern Callar opens with Samantha Morton’s face in close-up, bathed in a yellow light that fades in and out as she maintains a melancholic look, the ring on her hand glinting in the corner of the screen. We’re offered an atmosphere of uncertainty, with director Lynne Ramsay forcing the audience to sit in the tension of the sequence before revealing a wider image – Morton lying next to a dead body, a Christmas tree pathetically glowing in the background.
The movie, released in 2002, was based on Alan Warner’s novel of the same name, with Morton landing the leading titular role following a string of impressive performances in movies like Under the Skin, Sweet and Lowdown (which earned her an Oscar nomination), and Minority Report. As Morvern, Morton was required to play one of her most complex characters to date, however, and she pulled it off spectacularly, earning a Bifa for her performance.
Yet, Morton’s performance in Ramsay’s second feature easily could’ve earned her further accolades, and it’s a mystery why the actor wasn’t nominated by any larger institutions for her stunning turn as the grief-stricken young woman. Of course, awards aren’t the be-all-and-end-all of acting, and in recent years, the brilliance of Morvern Callar has been more widely celebrated, often making it onto lists of the greatest British films ever made.
Once the opening sequence of the film reveals the dead body of Morvern’s blood-stained boyfriend, which she strokes in silence, the protagonist is soon lured over to the computer by its glowing light, offering up an Alice in Wonderland-like message, ‘Read me’. Morvern is far away from any kind of wonderland, though, with her dreary, cyclical existence as a supermarket worker driving her to react to her boyfriend’s death in the most unconventional of ways.
Before sending off her boyfriend’s manuscript to be submitted for publication, she changes his name to her own, chops up his body, disposes of it, and lies to her friends about his whereabouts. She heads abroad with her best friend, Lanna, and even meets with some publishers who show interest in the book.
For Morvern, her boyfriend’s death forces her to wake up to the dreariness of her own life, and Morton excellently captures this moment of epiphany in Morvern, allowing her to wander and lose herself in alcohol, clubbing, and casual sex with differing levels of enthusiasm. Sometimes, she’s blank-faced, distant, and not fully there, overwhelmed by the seeming normality around her that is at odds with her inherently surreal situation. Then she has moments of great impulsivity, her face changing from an uncertain look to one of determination and passion.
Morton possesses a quiet power. While Morvern evidently harbours many intense thoughts and feelings that manifest in her erratic and shocking behaviour, Ramsay often puts emphasis on showing her alone, walking the streets, and observing others. When Morvern goes to a party, a disorientating use of handheld cameras – as though we’re also in attendance – creates a strange sense of intimacy with the character as she watches others being leery, the music drowning out any sense of stability. She holds her hand to her forehead, clearly overcome with a sense of sadness or confusion, and the camera gets up close to her, only for Morvern to disappear out of the frame.
It sometimes feels like you can see the layers of grief, uncertainty, and her desire for more buried behind her eyes. Morton is simply magnetising and compelling as Morvern, an underrated protagonist who blurs the boundaries between empathetic and unhinged. Morton has played many other great characters, earning acclaim in movies like In America, Control, Synecdoche, New York, and shows like The Walking Dead, but as Morvern, she is simply unforgettable.
