Mike Leigh movies feel like a magic trick. Observational, wry, funny, devastating and always rooted in character, Leigh allows us to take in some of the most fascinating people, the milieu they inhabit, those around them, their idiosyncrasies in the way they move about the world (cheerfully, as in “Happy-Go-Lucky”; chaotically in “Naked”). Then suddenly, a confession, a conflict, a conversation becomes a revelation, and the whole thing blossoms, unfolding to reveal the tender inner petals of life.

In partnership with his actors, Leigh excavates and displays the most vulnerable emotions and experiences a person can have, his films slowly building to cathartic crescendos, with glimmers of hope and salvation shining through. “How does he do it?” is a common refrain when watching a film by Leigh.

But first, the latest film from the 81-year-old British auteur is “Hard Truths,” a reunion with Marianne Jean- Baptiste, the star of his 1996 film “Secrets & Lies,” for which she was nominated for an Academy Award. Co-starring is Michele Austin, who also appeared in “Secrets & Lies,” and “Hard Truths” was shot by longtime Leigh cinematographer Dick Pope, the last film he made before he died in October 2024.

The reunion is some 20 years in the making, but Leigh’s filmmaking process is unorthodox and lengthy, requiring an intense amount of character work with the actors. But it’s through this journey that these characters feel so real, the performances so lived in.

“Hard Truths” is the story of a woman, Pansy (Jean-Baptiste), who finds the world difficult to navigate. She is, in a word, angry, at everything and everyone. This is a woman who glowers at pigeons, scrubs her home in a panicked fury, upbraids her adult son Moses (Tuwaine Barrett) and dismisses her plumber husband, Curtley (David Webber). That’s even before she ventures out into the world to terrorize doctors, dentists and patrons of furniture stores.

It takes a moment to realize that you can laugh in “Hard Truths,” but indeed, Pansy — and Jean-Baptiste’s performance of her — is quite funny, especially in the dichotomy of her reality and her worldview. Their small patch of backyard is “godforsaken wilderness”; a toolshed a “rat-infested hovel.” She launches into a tirade about “grinning, cheerful charity workers” who scam you, and questions why a dog needs a coat. Spitting every word like it’s coated in poison, Pansy is undeniably funny. It is also sad, especially as Moses and Curtley shrink from her rage.

Only Jean-Baptiste could make such a screed so funny, so piercing and so devastating. But Pansy’s bark is much worse than her bite. She can’t help it. Her anger masks her fear, providing a spiky, protective exoskeleton.

Standing in stark contrast is Pansy’s sister, Chantelle (Austin), a warm, empathetic hairdresser happy to listen to her clients as they unspool their tales in her chair. Her apartment, full of plants, laughter and gossip with her lively daughters, bursts with life, in opposition to Pansy’s sterile, cold, monochromatic space.

Chantelle and Pansy will have their reckoning, as Pansy rants at their mother’s grave, careening toward the climax of her rage. It is not one of her superficial screeds, but a heart-stopping moment of honesty and gutting admission that will cleave the viewer wide open — and leaves Pansy eerily quiet. It’s in the silence that Jean-Baptiste’s gifts as an actor shine. She harangues like nobody’s business, but breaks your heart when she’s at a loss for words. “Hard Truths” is a rare gift — don’t miss it.

MPA rating: R (for language)

Running time: 1:37

How to watch: In theaters