The Tale (2018)

A woman filming a documentary on childhood rape victims starts to question the nature of her childhood relationship with her riding instructor and running coach.

Director:

Jennifer Fox

Writer:

Jennifer Fox

Stars:

Laura Dern, Jason Ritter, Common

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 6 wins & 25 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Laura Dern	...	Jennifer
Jason Ritter	...	Bill
Common	...	Martin
Elizabeth Debicki	...	Mrs. G
Jessica Sarah Flaum	...	Jenny (15 Years)
Laura Allen	...	Young Nettie
Juli Erickson	...	Grandmother
Matthew Rauch	...	Aaron
Ellen Burstyn	...	Nettie
John Heard	...	William P. Allens
Dana Healey	...	Dr. G.
Aaron Williamson	...	Raymond (Ray)
Shay Lee Abeson	...	Young Becky
Isabella Amara	...	Young Franny
Jodi Long	...	Rebecca

Storyline

Jennifer Fox faces a host of life-altering questions after a short story from her middle school days forces her to re-examine her first sexual relationship and the stories we tell ourselves in order to survive. An accomplished documentarian working in New York, Jennifer is completing her latest project, about the lives of women around the world. She receives a series of phone calls from her mother, Nettie, who has found a short story Jennifer wrote at the age of 13 for school. In it, she describes various encounters with her riding instructor Mrs. G and her running coach Bill while away at summer camp. Nettie is unnerved by the implications of her daughter's writing, but Jennifer is nonplussed. She has always looked back with fondness on the time she spent with the two charismatic adults. Egged on by Nettie and encouraged by her supportive fiancé, Jennifer yearns to know more and sets out on a journey to find the real people 30 years later - the children, now adults, who also attended...

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Plot Keywords:

abuse | trauma | 1970s | teenage girl | 13 year old | 

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

TV-MA

Did You Know?

Trivia

Laura Dern and John Heard previously appeared together in Rambling Rose (1991). As with Ellen Burstyn, their previous project also featured Dern's mother, Diane Ladd.

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Goofs

When Mrs. G has on a green blouse smoking a cigarette while sitting on the couch surrounded by horse pictures and pillows where she says "I feel like you want me to apologize for something."....her position on the couch shifts from being centered and the black rimmed pillow to her left with the black horse on it moves from being next to her to behind her arm.

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Quotes

Jennifer: I couldn't ask for help. I was waiting for you to save me. Somehow in my mind, it couldn't be anybody else. It had to be you. Why didn't you?
Mrs. G: No one saved me.

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Connections

Featured in MsMojo: Top 10 Greatest Laura Dern Performances (2020)

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Soundtracks

If You Could Read My Mind
Written and performed by Gordon Lightfoot

User Reviews

A painful story that needs to be told

This film tells the story of a woman who realises what happened to her when she was a teenager.

It is a story that has a lot of impact on the viewer because of the disturbing subject matter. The story is engaging, and the portrayal of the grooming process is very detailed. It is a sad story, but it is a story that needs to be told, so that people will be vigilant if it happens again.

Details

Official Sites:

HBO [United States] Official site

Country:

USA Germany

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 May 2018 (Bulgaria)

Also Known As:

The Tale

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Gamechanger Films, A Luminous Mind Production, Untitled Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

114 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1