Review

This is a refreshingly intellectual take on the tolls of being a parent. It tackles the taboo subject regarding women who realise they probably shouldn’t have had children. There is a good connection between how actions in the past influence and lead to current actions. And duplicity that our main characters see in other mothers she encounters and situations she finds herself in.

Olivia Colman delivers a compelling performance. She is self-assured but quite cold and selfish. However, you do see glimpses of a caring person and can empathise with her situation. Maggie Gyllenhaal – in her directorial and screenwriting debut – takes an honest approach to filmmaking, letting the actors take centre stage, with closes-ups doing a lot of work.