For all our moments of self-awareness or nuggets of conventional wisdom, it’s really hard to know what we’re doing. There are plenty of sound bites of truth scattered throughout “20th Century Women”—things like “Having your heart broken is a tremendous way to learn about the world” and “Wondering if you’re happy is a great shortcut to being depressed”—but what do you do with them? As a makeshift family sits around listening to Jimmy Carter’s “Crisis of Confidence” speech, they all grapple with their own truths: What do we really know, and what do we do with what we know?
What happens?
In 1979, Dorothea Fields (Annette Bening) is as good a mother as anyone could hope to be. She doesn’t smother her son, Jamie (Lucas Jade Zumann), she tries to understand his music tastes and she engages him in conversation. As a single parent, she enlists the help of the other people in their lives—a mechanic (Billy Crudup) and a photographer (Greta Gerwig)—to try to help him grow up. “Don’t you need a man to raise a man?” asks Jamie’s childhood friend and crush, Julie (Elle Fanning). As they all fumble with their hold on life truths, it becomes clear that Dorothea is desperate to know her son but unwilling to let him know her.
What’s good?
“20th Century Women” is a fascinating time capsule, concerned with only 1979. The story takes place that summer, and woven among the story are voiceovers from the characters, reading from books of the time period. Director Mike Mills includes clips from 1970s speeches and movies too, all working together to remind what that time felt like to those who lived it. Each character is well-drawn, complex and superbly acted, and they all push and pull on each other in a way that feels accurate to human nature. Each person is introduced by a different character in voiceover—Jamie explains that his mother was born in 1924 and what happened to her in her youth. But at the film’s end, they all get the opportunity to narrate what they will do in the future—”I will go on to …” they say, taking ownership of their futures and reminding viewers that life exists both before and after a movie.
What’s bad?
The film is purposefully plotless, wandering as aimlessly as its characters. Its great commentary is existing in the moment, which it does quite well, but you mind find yourself aching for something a little more concrete to propel you through.
Final verdict
A funny, complicated burst of joy, confusion and melancholy.
3 stars (out of four)
@lchval | laurenchval@redeyechicago.com
