Critics praised "Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always," but the reviewer was less enthusiastic • True, the subject matter is important, the film is brave, and the climactic scene is heartbreaking, but much of the film is simply boring
Why do the heroines hardly talk to each other?
From the movie
A 17-year-old pregnant girl from a Pennsylvania powerhouse makes her way to Manhattan with her cousin to have an abortion - this is the plot of "Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always," one of the most notable and acclaimed American films of 2020. The
girl is called Otom (Fall), And her heartbreaking journey does indeed culminate in a powerful scene that will have no trouble knocking you off the chair (and justifying the superlatives).
But unfortunately, screenwriter-director Aliza Hitman ("Beach Rats") fails to maintain the same high standard in the rest of her work.
Hitman's minimalist and cautious approach - reflecting the meager production budget and semi-improvised filming days - yields a few small, touching moments, and best illustrates the absurd and traumatic journey that Otom goes through from a procedural-bureaucratic point of view.
But as a whole, the empathetic and felt script that concocted does not penetrate the characters' skin and does not rise dramatically, and other than that crushing scene mentioned in the previous paragraph, the superficial result is not particularly impressive or convincing.
Thus, for example, all the way from Pennsylvania to the abortion clinic in Manhattan, Otom and her cousin, Skyler (Talia Ryder), hardly exchange a word.
Why, actually?
In order not to ruin the atmosphere?
To leave the circumstances of Atom's pregnancy vague?
Because they are silent?
Because they live in a patriarchal society where men "stole their voice"?
Sabba.
legitimate.
But it's unreliable, and it's boring.
Thus, for example, every male character who appears in the film makes extreme efforts to be portrayed as a repulsive and disgusting monster.
Why, actually?
To illustrate to viewers how toxic the world of Atom and Skyler is infected with masculinity?
To show us how lonely and poor Atom is?
To make us think that each of the men in her life might be the one who got her pregnant?
To be in her favor?
Sabba.
legitimate.
But again, this is not reliable, and it's boring.
The importance of "never, rarely, sometimes, always" is unquestionable.
Due to the political explosiveness of the subject, there are almost no American films that deal with abortions (not to mention films that deal with abortions staged by women), and Hitman's film - which won prestigious awards at Sundance and Berlin festivals and scores 99 percent positive reviews on Rotten Tomatoes - is certainly commendable Levels for his courage and determination to tell a story so "controversial" in such a direct and unadorned way.
But a masterpiece?
come on.
"Never, Rarely, Sometimes, Always" (USA 2020), Cellcom TV (from next week also on yes and HOT)
Score: 7