Hard Truths (2024) review

This is the evil cousin to Happy-Go-Lucky.  During her every waking moment, Pansy Deacon (Marianne Jean-Baptiste) lashes out at her family and society: she constantly berates her plumber husband Curtley (David Webber) and oafish son Moses (Tuwaine Barrett), starts arguments in the checkout queue at the supermarket, behaves rudely towards a physician and a dentist, and so on ... but her hairdresser sister Chantelle (Michele Austin) takes her to visit their mother's grave and makes an attempt to soften her up.  It's a gutsy move on Leigh's part to create a main character this cantankerous and vile and keep the picture somewhat watchable - he's a master at working with actors and actresses - except I'm not sure all the pieces get resolved in a satisfactory way, and it's clear Pansy has mental issues that are unaddressed (a combination of medication and anger management might have been beneficial ... if she'd agree to it, which I doubt).  I also don't think it's out of line to wonder what the 81-year-old auteur truly knows about the lives of British ladies of African descent, although he is an empathetic grandfather figure and is probably curious.  He does allow the faintest glimmer of hope for Moses, however, when a young lady has a conversation with him: hopefully, she's the saving force that pries him away from his oppressive mum and gives his life meaning.