This film is part of Rentals
20th Century Women
Annette Bening shines as the hipster mum who enlists two young friends (Greta Gerwig and Elle Fanning) to help her son navigate adolescence in this Oscar nominated comedy-drama.
Director: Mike Mills
Overview
Annette Bening shines in her Golden Globe-nominated role as Dorothea, the hipster single mum who finds a novel way of parenting in late 70s California. Determined to ensure her son Jamie (Lucas Jade Zumann) respects women’s feelings as he embarks on his sexual awakening, she enlists the help of her kooky lodger Abbie (Greta Gerwig) and Jamie’s best friend Julie (Elle Fanning) to act as supplementary mother figures and feminist guides. Their thoroughly modern family unit is completed by fellow tenant and stoner carpenter William (Billy Crudup).
This wonderfully astute and piquantly funny ensemble drama is the latest treat from doyen of the US indie scene Mike Mills (Thumbsucker, Beginners), who earned his first Oscar nomination for a pitch-perfect screenplay that’s loosely based on his own upbringing. While many of the laughs do arise from the Dorothea’s unapologetically bohemian parenting skills, Mills is not directing us to laugh at these richly drawn and thoroughly sympathetic characters. Unlike the arch detachment seen in some US indie features, Mills is more concerned with crafting a genuinely affecting tale. Offering offbeat insights into perils of parenthood, 20th Century Women also perfectly evokes the cusp of the 1980s, as punk radicalism makes way for a more conventional decade. And also confirms Mills as one of the major talents in American independent cinema.
strong sex references, strong language, drug misuse
Related
Timestalker Timestalker
Comedy 2024 89 mins Director: Alice Lowe
Alice Lowe's time-jumping fantasy rom-com is a colourful, darkly funny treat.
Night Courier (Mandoob) Night Courier (Mandoob)
Comedy 2023 112 mins Director: Ali Kalthami
A desperate delivery driver gets caught up in the dark underworld of Riyadh in Ali Kalthami’s gripping, pitch-black satire.
Seven Psychopaths Seven Psychopaths
Comedy 2012 110 mins Director: Martin McDonagh
Three Billboards' director Martin McDonagh spins an epic and twisted tale of pets and gangsters, with an all-star cast.
The Day Shall Come The Day Shall Come
Comedy 2019 88 mins Director: Christopher Morris
An impoverished Miami preacher is lured into terrorism by the FBI, in the latest explosive satire from comedy genius Chris Morris.
Tamara Drewe Tamara Drewe
Comedy 2010 111 mins Director: Stephen Frears
The return of beautiful journalist Tamara Drewe (Gemma Arterton) awakens destructive passions in a Dorset village.
The Edge of Seventeen The Edge of Seventeen
Comedy 2016 104 mins Director: Kelly Fremon
Kelly Fremon Craig’s coming-of-age comedy eschews quirkiness for genuine warmth, while boasting a hilarious supporting turn from Woody Harrelson.
Captain Fantastic Captain Fantastic
Drama 2016 119 mins Director: Matt Ross
Viggo Mortensen plays the father-gone-primitive in this wonderful award-winning comedy about an off-grid family.
I, Daniel Blake I, Daniel Blake
Drama 2016 100 mins Director: Ken Loach
Ken Loach’s powerful, Palme d’Or-winning invective against welfare injustice captured the mood of modern Britain and became his biggest box office success.
The Girl on the Train The Girl on the Train
Thriller 2016 112 mins Director: Tate Taylor
Emily Blunt stars in the adaptation of the best-seller about a divorcee who entangles herself in the investigation of a missing young woman.
Arrival Arrival
Science Fiction 2016 116 mins Director: Denis Villeneuve
Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner star as the humans who make first contact with extra-terrestrial visitors in this richly textured sci-fi from director Denis Villeneuve.
Toni Erdmann Toni Erdmann
Comedy 2016 162 mins Director: Maren Ade
A lonely prankster upends the life of his high-powered daughter in a riotous comedy, deep and sharp.
Daphne Daphne
Drama 2017 87 mins Director: Peter Mackie Burns
Emily Beecham stars in a powerful character study about a 31-year-old chef who's drifting through her London life, until she witnesses a shocking event…
Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool
Biopic 2017 106 mins Director: Paul McGuigan
Annette Bening and Jamie Bell bring to life the true story of the love affair between Gloria Grahame and young, Liverpudlian actor Peter Turner.
Richard III Richard III
Drama 1996 104 mins Director: Richard Loncraine
Ian McKellen and Richard Loncraine’s bold restaging transplants Shakespeare’s play to an imagined 1930s fascist Britain.
Trumbo Trumbo
Biopic 2015 124 mins Director: Jay Roach
Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad, Argo) gives a cracking performance as Dalton Trumbo, the Oscar-winning screenwriter who became a Hollywood outcast.
Galveston Galveston
Thriller 2018 94 mins Director: Mélanie Laurent
Ben Foster and Elle Fanning play fugitives on the run from a criminal gang, in this gritty crime thriller from the creator of True Detective.
Ginger & Rosa Ginger & Rosa
Drama 2012 90 mins Director: Sally Potter
Teenage friendship is torn apart when Rosa finds love in the wrong place, in Sally Potter's acute, 60s-set drama.
Timestalker Timestalker
Comedy 2024 89 mins Director: Alice Lowe
Alice Lowe's time-jumping fantasy rom-com is a colourful, darkly funny treat.
South: Sir Ernest Shackleton's Glorious Epic of the Antarctic South: Sir Ernest Shackleton's Glorious Epic of the Antarctic
Documentary 1919 81 mins Silent Director: Frank Hurley
An extraordinary story of survival in the wastes of Antarctica.
Night Courier (Mandoob) Night Courier (Mandoob)
Comedy 2023 112 mins Director: Ali Kalthami
A desperate delivery driver gets caught up in the dark underworld of Riyadh in Ali Kalthami’s gripping, pitch-black satire.
The Ballymurphy Precedent The Ballymurphy Precedent
Documentary 2018 108 mins Director: Callum Macrae
John Pilger's film on the conflict in Northern Ireland is a skilful mix of investigative journalism, documentary storytelling and reflections on contemporary history.
Utopia Utopia
Documentary 2013 111 mins Director: John Pilger and Alan Lowery
John Pilger's portrayal of the oldest continuous human culture is also an investigation into a suppressed colonial past, and rapacious present.
The Coming War on China The Coming War on China
Documentary 2016 113 mins Director: John Pilger
John Pilger’s prescient 60th film for ITV is both a warning and an inspiring story of resistance.