Never Rarely Sometimes Always Movie Review
Writer and Director Eliza Hittman has outdone herself with Never Rarely Sometimes Always. This movie will be a turn off for many people because of the subject matter: abortion. Regardless of how you may feel about the issue, it’s hard to deny how spectacularly well crafted this story is.
Autumn (Sidney Flanigan) is seventeen and lives in rural Pennsylvania. She is somewhat outcast at school and works at a grocery store as a checker. Her only real friend is Skylar (Talia Ryder). We discover early on that Autumn is pregnant. She goes to a fairly rudimentary clinic in her hometown where they confirm the pregnancy and deftly encourage her to have the baby as they laden her down with adoption pamphlets.
Skylar discovers the pregnancy and without really having a discussion about it, the girls hatch a plan to go to New York for an abortion. They steal money from work to fund their trip and catch a bus to NYC. Upon arriving at the clinic, Autumn discovers she is 18 weeks along and not 10 weeks as she was told in Pennsylvania. Was it an actual error or was it an attempt to prevent her from being able to have an abortion? It’s never actually confirmed but I would lean towards the latter.
The girls wind up having to stay in New York for a few nights as the procedure takes two days to complete due to the more advanced stage of her pregnancy. With no money and no place to stay, they wander the streets of New York getting late night snacks and visiting an arcade to pass the time. There is one scene that will take a grip on your heart. It’s a very simple scene with the camera on Autumn’s face and a therapist asking her some questions. The questions revolve around her sex life and abuse and is especially prevalent on the fringe of the #MeToo movement. Flanigan gives a heart wrenching performance in this scene that as far as I could discern was shot in one take. You hear the therapist asking questions calmly as Autumn completely unravels alluding to some level of abuse that is not overtly classified.
Men take a backseat in the movie but their presence pervades the world of Autumn and Skylar. Hittman creates an impending sense of danger whenever a male presence is announced on screen and you find yourself increasingly more worried for Skylar and Autumn’s safety. It builds the tension until it is palpable.
Never Rarely Sometimes Always showcases the entire process of trying to get an abortion and how many hoops one must jump through before being able to potentially receive one. I was most impressed with the crafting of the story and the tiny ways in which Hittman conveys the world that Autumn inhabits. Flanigan (and Ryder on some level) gives a searing but understated performance that is worthy of a nomination. Flanigan is so extraordinary I was shocked to see she has no other acting credits to her name. I’m excited to see what her next project will be. Never Rarely Sometimes Always will break your heart a few times and share a new perspective on what it means to grow up as a young girl.
Film or Movie: Movie
You’ll like this movie if:
1. You support the #MeToo movement
2. You like painful coming of age stories
3. You want to see the world through the eyes of a young teenage girl
