Director Eliza Hittman made good on the promise of her excellent 2018 films “Beach Rats” by delivering the thoroughly gripping “Never Rarely Sometimes Always,” the best movie I saw at Sundance 2020.
This abortion drama had a 17-year-old girl who finds out she’s 18 weeks pregnant, but cannot get an abortion in conservative-minded small-town Pennsylvania, and decides to travel to New York City to get the procedure done. There, alongside her teenage cousin, she goes through the frustratingly elaborate and complicated system of getting an abortion. Hittman’s film, which will compete at the Berlin Film Festival this month, is highly influenced by euro-cinema but brings a fresh new vision to the game. It might be a small indie but, much like the best movies that have come out of Sundance over its close to 40 years of existence, it packs a wallop.
Here’s the official synopsis:
An intimate portrayal of two teenage girls in rural Pennsylvania. Faced with an unintended pregnancy and a lack of local support, Autumn and her cousin Skylar embark on a brave, fraught journey across state lines to New York City.
In addition to its Sundance debut, the film also came very close to winning the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival. Hittman’s drama won the runner-up prize, Silver Bear, instead, but this only proved how much staying power this movie might have when it is released in theaters on March 13.
You can watch the new trailer below.
I don’t know about you, but I’m kind of looking forward to the “Michael” sequel. Whether Vantoine directs it or John Logan, it doesn’t matter—it’s an inevitable sh*tshow that will result from its making and release.