By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4 cats
Director: Alex Thompson
Starring: Braden Crothers | Charin Alvarez | Kelly O'Sullivan | Ramona Edith Williams | William Drain
Country: united_states
Year: 2020
Running time: 106
IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9016016/reference
Ivy says: “This film is being made available in Boston through the Coolidge’s virtual screening room, and I assume it will be available nationally at other art house cinemas.
“I recommend this small, American indie. I think it’s a perfect Chlotrudis film.
“It is an intimate story of a woman who is floundering personally and professionally while she watches her friends begin to have families, excel at work, etc. It took me a while to get into it so I recommend giving the film some time so you can settle into the tone and pace.
“This is the perfect example of the kind of film that can get made when diverse perspectives are able to create. It is about the questions and choices connected to becoming a mother, what does it mean to have a family, how does faith fit into a progressive life.
“It is something that I know a lot of American women talk about with each other and struggle with but I have never seen a film capture or communicate this.
“I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.”
Michael says: “I love coming-of-age stories, and I love that coming-of-age stories can take place in your early teens, your twenties, or evening your thirties, as is the case for Bridget in SAINT FRANCES, written and starring Kelly Thompson, and directed by Alex Thompson. Bridget is a thirty-something without a career, and bit adrift. She hooks up with a sweet guy at a party and ends up pregnant. They have an abortion, just as Bridget gets a job as a nanny for Fraces, a precocious 6-year-old living in upscale Evanston, IL with two mommies and a newborn baby brother. It sounds formulaic and predictable, but as the movie unfolds, Bridget learns a great deal about herself as her relationship with Frances blossoms.
“Kelly Thompson has written a lovely and quietly powerful story that explores a lot of the experiences women have that they don’t talk about, or at least they certainly don’t make movies about them. The drama is reality-based, no melodramatic hijinks or escaping criminals; just everyday challenges that people face in life, whether it’s dealing with the bigoted bully who doesn’t approve of gay couples, or the postpartum depression that is often left untreated, or even undiscused, or even just dealing with and talking about the feelings experienced after an abortion, even though you know it’s the right decision. Alex Thompson does a nice job with the direction too, keeping things low-key and real. Bridget experiences what is arguably her best summer ever; certainIy one that as her mother would say, makes it worth her being born. I applaud this film, and recommend it! 4 cats”