Lee Israel was a successful author and celebrity biographer in the 1970s and 80s. When her publishing market dried up in the early 90s, she desperately turned to literary forgery. Melissa McCarthy gives a beautiful performance (both dramatic and humorous) as Israel in this fascinating telling of her tale, capturing the author’s caustic wit and creating a colorful and moving portrait of a complex woman. Richard E. Grant co-stars as Jack, a flamboyant and surly rebel who becomes her accomplice in pursuing unsuspecting targets in the collectors’ market. With Dolly Wells, Jane Curtin, Ben Falcone, Anna Deavere Smith, Stephen Spinella. Writers: Nicole Holofcener, Jeff Whitty. Director: Marielle Heller. (US 2018) 106 min.