Never Rarely Sometimes Always (2020)

A teenage girl, followed by her cousin, leaves her hometown to go to New York to terminate her unexpected pregnancy.

Never underestimate the power of independent cinema. It rarely disappoints. Sometimes, it defies the traditional, conventional narrative. Always, though, it offers a more realistic perspective.

The difference with American studio-level films shows, in this case, even before the narrative unfolds. Take a close look at the actors; they are everyday people, not like underwear models. It’s (not) funny how studios nowadays indulge diversity and inclusion but don’t cast actors who wouldn’t be a fit for a fragrance poster. But this review is not about the industry’s hypocrisy, so…

Eliza Hittman writes and directs a modern, painful Odyssey about a girl who suffers in silence, has no room in her life for the baby she is carrying and decides to make a journey to make the most difficult decision of her life yet. Admittedly, I haven’t watched her other films, but I most definitely will after this one. Like an omniscient narrator, Hittman mounts the camera on her shoulder and closely follows Autumn and Skylar exploring The Big Apple for the first time. The close-ups and the extreme close-ups leave you no choice but to feel Autumn’s pain, embark on that coach, share the experience of discovery, but mainly, go through the shivering experience of what comes next.

The “never, rarely, sometimes, always” moment is the brutal realisation that facing the pain is exponentially harder than imagining facing the pain. The editor, Scott Cummings, is on board with this idea as he’s very careful where to cut when this conversation takes place. He cuts selectively and only briefly to the counsellor but mostly stays with Autumn’s close-up, “forcing” you to look when she breaks. Why? Because it’s not pretty. And it’s even uglier when these questions are asked because only then do the boys’ initial, hideous comments and gestures make sense. Think about it from the narrative’s point of view; it takes an hour to indirectly indicate why those comments were made and how they are related to the pregnancy. What is also astonishing is the “show, don’t tell” subplot of the bond between Autumn and Skylar, which needs no soppy dialogue to project one has love for the other without overshadowing the film’s delicate and sorrowful subject.

In a very disciplined manner, Hittman manages not to get caught up in the ethics behind abortion and to focus on how it burdens an already suffering girl. It might seem easy, but rest assured that it is not. In fact, it is one of the main issues pretentious films face when they tackle too many issues, address some, and finally delve into none. Never Rarely Sometimes Always brilliantly achieves that focus, and I can’t praise it enough. Speaking of praising, Sidney Flanigan deserves an Oscar for her realistic performance. I take my hat off to Talia Ryder, who doesn’t let her natural beauty overshadow her acting and, surprisingly, gives “friendship” the meaning it always should have.

Compare Promising Young Woman (2021) with this one and see for yourselves how you feel about the different styles of filmmaking.

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