Philomena Lee Defends The Adaptation Of Her Story In New Judi Dench Movie
Nov. 27 2013, Published 6:21 p.m. ET
A new movie starring Judi Dench has drawn criticism for the way it adapted the story of the subject, Philomena Lee — and now she's fighting back to defend the film.
According to an report on Deadline, after a somewhat nasty review was published by the New York Post's Kyle Smith about the newly released and potential Oscar contender Philomena, Lee responded directly to Smith with an open letter.
"Your review of the movie paints its story as being a condemnation of Catholicism and conservative views. It states that the relationship depicted between Mr. Martin Sixsmith and myself comes across as contrived and trite, and funny for all the wrong reasons. Forgive me for saying so, Kyle, but you are incorrect," Lee wrote.
"What Stephen Frears did with Martin’s book is something extraordinary and quite real. Stephen’s take on the story of Martin and me searching for my long lost son, who I hadn’t spoken of to a single soul in fifty years, has overwhelmingly spoken to those who have seen it in a very positive light. For that I am intensely grateful, not just because people the world over have watched the movie with open hearts and embraced me for coming forward with the truth after all this time. The story it tells has resonated with people not because it’s some mockery of ideas or institutions that they’re in disagreement with. This is not a rally cry against the church or politics. In fact, despite some of the troubles that befell me as a young girl, I have always maintained a very strong hold on my faith."
The movie is about Lee's life: she was sent to a Catholic monastery in Ireland as a teenager after she got pregnant and was persuaded to sign away her rights to the child. She still cared for him for the first three years of his life while she worked as an indentured laundry