"Never Rarely Sometimes Always": Movie Review
Written By Alex Greenbaum
Abortion dramas of this caliber don't come along very often. Its thoughtful exposition of its colorful (but real) cast of characters and heightened dramatic moments enable a sense of importance for its difficult subject of thought. Even with its flawed edges, "Never Rarely Sometimes Always" is easily one of the best movies of 2020.
Taking place in modern-day Pennsylvania a pregnant, 17-year-old girl (Sidney Flanigan) and her cousin (Talia Ryder) travel to New York to search for an abortion clinic.
Additional films at the cinema should provide this manner of thoughtful insight into the significance of topics such as abortion. With such precision and nuance that is integrated into Autumn's story, director/writer Eliza Hittman has taken obvious inspiration from films such as the 2009 masterpiece, "Precious". Through its grainy filter and complex characterizations, Hittman has achieved an incredibly hard balancing act with pristine dexterity.
Although the film dives deep into exploiting the dark side of the male gender, it loses hold of its realism while doing so. From Autumn's verbally abusive stepfather to her unduly bizarre interactions with her boss, these sequences quickly disintegrates into a zany distraction that lacks purposefulness. Even with its shortcomings, the film never loses touch with its character's youthful ignorance, which is as equally charming as it is painful.
"Never Rarely Sometimes Always" is undoubtedly one of the most important films I've ever seen. Its imprecise expression of the male gaze can be distracting, but I couldn't help but be blown away by a story that needed to be told. Hittman has created a new standard for narrative storytelling.
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