Review of 20th Century Women (2016) by Jon C — 20 Jan 2017
Stunning filmmaking in one of the most interesting films of 2016. I was hooked from the first frame to the last, following all of the trials, tribulations and insights of all of the fascinating characters that fill writer/director Mike Mills' frame. Annette Bening and Lucas Jade Zumann especially steal every scene they're in, with great supporting performances from Billy Crudup, Greta Gerwig and Elle Fanning.
It's the writing that is such a great foundation to this movie, but the filmmaking style then takes the great script and makes it something unique and original. I loved the unusual use of the character voiceovers talking about the past, present and future and each other. And the short character history bio scenes are an interesting documentary/cinéma vérité style approach. Mills just captures something special about the 1979 time period and pairs it with 2016 filmmaking prowess.
Bening deserves another Oscar nomination, but I still think she should've won for The Kids Are All Right. Zumann really deserves an Oscar nom as well for delivering an incredible teenage boy character that rarely sees this kind of time and treatment on the screen.
Definitely one of the best films of 2016 or any year.
This review of 20th Century Women (2016) was written by Jon C on 20 Jan 2017.
20th Century Women has generally received very positive reviews.
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