Review of Judy & Punch: A Splendid Reimagining – Great

Judy & Punch is a reimagining of the Punch and Judy puppet show, with an added #metoo angle. For the Punch and Judy show, there are certain narrative elements that are a part of the show. Punch will always mishandle the baby, Judy comes back and finds out about it, then he takes his stick to her, even the policeman will feel the wrath of his stick. He will encounter various figures along the way, before facing his final foe, and depending on the version being told, this could be a crocodile, a ghost or a hangman.

Being familiar with the history will certainly allow you to appreciate the cleverness of the film more, like the crocodile shows up in a dream sequence at one point in the film, and it puzzled me since I didn’t know much about the show prior to watching the film. However, for the most part, Judy & Punch manages to be fairly self contained. We follow married couple Judy (Mia Wasikowska) and Punch (Damon Herriman), who perform puppet shows for coin.

They used to be world class and famous, but Punch’s drinking habit ruined things for them, so now they’re back at the bottom. Punch refuses to take ownership and fancies himself a puppet visionary, not acknowledging that his wife is a large contributor to the success of the show. They have a child together, but Punch doesn’t particularly care for his child or his wife, mishandling one and ignoring the advice of the other.

Director Mirrah Foulkes (who also penned the script) is a risk taker, often holding moments of levity and horror together. As we watch Punch stumble around drunk with his child in hand, we are on the edge of our seats, equally drunk with expectation, wondering if there will be a misstep. When it happens your instinct will be to laugh, before the horror of it all dawns on you. In the puppet show, the audience laughs when Punch slaps people around, but such violence is a different thing in real life, and Foulkes wants us to see the very real consequences of unchecked male aggression.

The visual style is fantastic and the decision to use the 17th century English backdrop to deliver a contemporary message is truly inspired stuff. Wasikowska is her usual competent self (she’s been in quite a few of these period films), and Herriman, known for his role as Charles Manson in both Once Upon A Time In Hollywood and Mindhunter, cuts quite the villainous figure. I have never hated a character more than Punch, so this is a testament to how detestable Herriman makes the character.

The narrative also has the added feature of witch trials, a tumultuous time in history, where individuals, mostly women, were found to be witches over perceived associations with evil and the devil. Women were stoned or burned for ridiculous reasons, like staring too long at the moon or having rashes. There is very little needed to be convinced of their guilt, with Foulkes reminding us of the detrimental effects of mob mentality. These witch hunts kept the town on its toes, everyone afraid to be different for fear of being labelled a witch.

After facing Punch’s abuse, Judy is nursed back by a group of outsiders, who left before they could be called witches and killed. This is where the #metoo elements kick in to high gear, with Judy debating if she should return to face her abuser. Some of the women tell her to move on, for the town is so fixed in their myopic views that they wouldn’t be able to see her side.

This is the refrain we have as society, where a ‘He Said/She Said’ situation would result in a stalemate that doesn’t go anywhere, so maybe it’s better to move on with your life. As Judy struggles with what she should do, Punch gets more aggressive and violent, continuing his mistreatment of women. The message is clear, though a bit heavy-handed: societal change can only occur with individual bravery and rebellion. Because we root for Judy to confront him and to seek justice for both herself and her child, then we must encourage others to do the same – speaking out is the only way forward. Well, it ends a bit more messily in Judy & Punch, but you get the picture.

Review screener provided.