Jessica Chastain and Peter Sarsgaard reflect on the gray areas of 'Memory'

When Jessica Chastain first read the script for “Memory,” she was struck by the unanswered questions left swirling around her head about issues pertaining to love, sex and consent

LOS ANGELES -- When Jessica Chastain first read the script for “Memory,” she was struck by the flurry of unanswered questions left swirling around in her head about issues pertaining to love, sex and consent — which might be antithetical to what some audiences expect from a movie.

“Sometimes I think films can be seen as like lectures of the right way of being,” she says.

But the Oscar winner does not subscribe to that philosophy of cinema. And it was writer and director Michel Franco’s willingness to probe gray areas and leave questions unanswered that ultimately persuaded Chastain to star in “Memory,” in select theaters now with a nationwide release set for Friday.

“Memory” follows Sylvia (Chastain), who is hired by the family of a man named Saul ( Peter Sarsgaard ) to keep him company as he navigates early onset dementia. Although her background in caretaking is a plus, Saul’s family mostly wants someone to spend time with him — until Sylvia is suspected of developing romantic feelings for Saul.

“It felt like a film that would be impossible to make within a studio system because there’d be so many people, especially in the political environment we’re in, coming out of MeToo.” Chastain explains. “Everyone would be so afraid of making a mistake, of saying the wrong thing.”