Long before Cruel But Necessary was officially released, or the truth behind its creation was revealed, hundreds of thousands of American YouTubers were watching housewife Betty Munson’s homemade videos as if they were real.

A middle-aged wife and mother accidentally discovers her husband’s infidelity on videotape, and continues to record her entire life, and the lives of those around her, with a hidden camera. Concealing the camera in a hideously decorated purse, Betty (Wendel Meldrum of The Wonder Years and Blast from the Past) invites us to witness, scrutinize, and judge her life like a reality TV show. The fact that the vignettes are carefully constructed film scenes hardly detracts from Betty’s quest, which, admittedly, is never quite clear. Does she want to see her life from another’s perspective, to understand it better? Does she become addicted to eavesdropping on others, including installing a camera in her teenage son’s bedroom? Meldrum states in a bonus feature interview that she wanted to explore the idea of a culture turning its back on a woman who had, until now, followed its rules to a T. She married, settled down, had a child, did everything right, but inevitably ended up alone. After discovering her husband’s infidelity, her life progresses towards a downward spiral of deceit and financial doom, and the camera seems to be her only ally.

Shot almost entirely from Betty’s camera lens, the viewer’s voyeuristic position is pure satisfaction, full of both shocking and hilarious episodes. We catch her unconsciously smearing chocolate on her face, her co-worker squirming under a sexual harassment threat, and her mother surreptitiously stealing, in addition to an uncomfortable gynecologist visit (a big hit on YouTube). We also witness her budding interest in Buddhism, her struggle to connect with her son, and her growing obsession with getting everything on tape. The result is a stunning exposé of a middle-aged woman’s plight to make sense of life, and I have to give credit to writer/star Meldrum and director Saul Rubinek for using such a realistic approach. Meldrum’s real-life son and ex-husband (Luke and Mark Humphrey) play her onscreen son and ex-husband, and the Munson household is actually the actress’s own pad. The film loses a bit of steam by the end, but the camera’s point of view never becomes stale, something I anticipated, and Meldrum’s spot on performance, which garnered her the outstanding actress award at the Winnipeg International Film Festival in 2007, more than holds your interest. B. Bastron
November 26, 2008