In a deeply religious country like the United States, it must have taken a lot of courage for someone like Madelyn Murray-0'Hair to speak out as an atheist in those early post war years. So, I would have expected a film about her life's work to have been more focused and professional. Netflix is good at glossy, polished productions and this film lacks a centre and attention to detail, which has become their hallmark. It is a real pity because as a Brit watching her, the actress, Melissa Leo who depicts Madelyn was about the best thing about the whole film. She acted with conviction and passion, and whilst I have learnt a little bit more about her from this film, the lingering memory is of a film that was poorly directed and scripted, and doesn't show what made her rebel against the system. In fact, the best scene in the film, for me, was when she interrupted her child's class to inform the teacher that as an atheist, she could not let her child take part in religious services. And she backed it up with the first amendment. The sense of outrage this brings out in the teacher is well depicted, but for the rest of the movie, the casual acting and direction made for uncomfortable viewing.
Review of The Most Hated Woman in America
