SHIRLEY

Directed by Josephine Decker

Synopsis

Set in the early 1950s, the film charts an imagined chapter in the life of Jackson, who has recently become a literary sensation. When her philandering professor husband (Michael Stuhlbarg) invites a newlywed couple into their home, the reclusive writer is forced to change her routine, which heightens tensions in their already tempestuous household. This change acts as a catalyst, sparking inspiration for the anxiety-prone writer. As she becomes enamoured with Rose, her unsuspecting new muse, Shirley’s obsession plunges her into a quasi-delirium, awakening a repressed femininity that could inspire her next masterpiece.

Elisabeth Moss gives a tour-de-force performance as Shirley Jackson, one of the greatest horror writers of the 20th Century, in this unconventional biopic from the brilliant mind of director Josephine Decker (Madeline’s Madeline), a powerful new voice in independent filmmaking.

“This psychologically-dense spellbinder takes a cue from Jackson’s novels and simmers with mystery and menace.” Rolling Stone

In cinemas and on Curzon Home Cinema on 30 October