The former New York Times-bestselling biographer Lee Israel (Melissa McCarthy) is down on her luck and behind on her rent. Fired from her copywriting job for swearing at her manager (twice), Lee refuses to bow to authority. The writer’s unwillingness to ‘play the game’ with her publisher has damaged her reputation and dashed her chances of securing a book advance. In a moment of desperation, Lee realises she has a knack for imitating the epistolary style of other artists. Fooling independent booksellers into acquiring her forged letters proves to be lucrative. So lucrative, in fact, that she and her friend Jack (a magnetic Richard E Grant) soon appear on a FBI watch list… The sophomore film of Marielle Heller (The Diary of a Teenage Girl), Can You Ever Forgive Me? is a charming, understated movie that peers into the inner lives of two recluses. (Plus it’s refreshing to see two gay characters at the centre of a movie where their sexual identity is not its primary focus.) McCarthy – beloved as a comedy actress – stands her own in this drama, demonstrating her range as the spiky, sharp-tongued Lee. Based on a true story, Can You Ever Forgive Me? is a thoughtful meditation on loneliness, friendship and celebrity.

‘Can You Ever Forgive Me?’ is released in cinemas on 1 February 2019.