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Never Rarely Sometimes Always Movie Review

Never Rarely Sometimes Always is a 2020 indie drama film directed by Eliza Hittman and starring Sidney Flanigan. It’s a pretty strong indie.

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“They couldn’t really help me“

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Faced with an unintended pregnancy and a lack of local support, Autumn and her cousin, Skylar, travel across state lines to New York City on a fraught journey of friendship, bravery and compassion. Abortion is a very complicated issue that is never going to be fully resolved, and this is another film that doesn’t deal with it particularly cleverly, but what it does is portray the emotional toll that an unwanted pregnancy can cause in a very young girl.

Eliza Hittman is pretty much a newcomer in the cinematic landscape, but her direction here is one of a confident veteran director. Some of the best choices here come from her direction, and in particular the emphasis on the nuance in all those details when it comes to male strangers. Some are overly fabricated, but most make you the audience uncomfortable, and the movie so painfully showcases just how frustrating and plain dangerous life as a woman can be.

Never Rarely Sometimes Always is at its best when it deals with those uncomfortable feelings where men chase women – Jasper is a particularly horrendous example of that as the guy who thinks that he is acting nice, but is actually incredibly annoying and even creepy at times. I also found that hospital examination sequence heartbreaking. The entire film is uncomfortable in a very deliberate way.

Sidney Flanigan is fantastic in the main role. This is literally her first performance in a movie ever and it’s so good, in fact, that it should bring her to the map, at least for other future indies first. She is very natural here and particularly strong at portraying uncomfortable and sad emotions.

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Everyone is pretty good, but she steals the show undoubtedly. I found the first act of the movie rather slow, but the second one is excellent and the third is solid, but a more memorable ending was definitely needed. The entire movie needed more dialogue, but it certainly benefits from its subtle, cinematic and detailed approach at storytelling.

Never Rarely Sometimes Always needed more sophistication and dialogue in it, but it’s at its best when dealing with nuanced, subtle emotion as it’s filmed in such a way that it becomes painful and very uncomfortable to watch throughout. The movie in particular offers a terrific showcase for newcomer Sidney Flanigan.