The Healing Powers of Oscar Isaac

It’s hard to say whether it’s the sort of exercise a bereavement counsellor would recommend: come to grips with the recent loss of your mother by taking on the role of a movie character processing the ultimate heartbreak. Throw in Annette Bening playing a psychologist to accompany you through a series of therapy scenes requiring a great deal of scripted crying, and action! For Oscar Isaac, it initially just felt like awful timing. “My mom passed away last February, and I