*A few spoilers

IMDB Synopsis

Faced with an unintended pregnancy and a lack of local support, Autumn and her cousin, Skylar, travel across state lines to New York City on a fraught journey of friendship, bravery and compassion.

“What did the doctor say?”

Teenage Pregnancy is a topic that always resonates throughout the world because of all the ways it can happen. Sometimes two people just have sex and forget protection, however other times situations can be forced and things happen that you may not want. That is why abortion is such a hot topic and something this new Eliza Hittman movie deals with.

The story is about a teen (Sidney Flanigan) who we find out later was raped, and now has a pregnancy that she did not plan for. She wants an abortion but she does not want to tell her parents, and in Pennsylvania that is illegal under the age of 18. So she and her friend Skylar (Talia Ryder) decide to go to New York to try and get one there. In New York they get into a couple adventures but Autumn has to start really dealing with her decision and what it means for her future.

The movie premiered at Sundance and it definitely has an indie vibe to it. One thing I really enjoyed about it is how lean it was. We never really learned about her family life except one scene, and they do not even tell us about the boy who got her pregnant. The most we learn about her in a scene is when the abortion clinic asks her questions and tells her to answer with Never, Rarely, Sometimes, or Always. It is just Autumn’s story and we are just riding along.

Stock Watch

Stock Up – Sidney Flanigan

This was her film debut and honestly she was fantastic. To star in a really deep and thought provoking movie at such a young age could not have been easy, and she nailed it. If she decides to continue acting I think she will have a great career.

*A couple other tidbits

• The Nose Piercing scene was tough.
• I really enjoyed the consistent score by Julia Holter that gave us a through line in the story.
• The tic tac toe vs the chicken was very odd and I do not know how that would work.

I was impressed by this movie and it is the best movie I have seen so far this year. I also think it will be important moving forward, because this was Directed, Written, Acted, Scored, and Shot all by women. That is awesome and shows that hopefully Hollywood can continue to move forward and be more inclusive. This a heart-wrenching story but it is very topical and it is well made.

Juice Rating:

*You can find my 2020 Rankings here.

*You can find all of my Movie Ratings here.

*You can follow my Letterboxd account here.