Never Rarely Sometimes Always

The hit of this year's Berlinale,  Never Rarely Sometimes Always won the festival's Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize. Though the film is raw, it grips viewers in rapt tension with its story of several days in the life of a teenager from the Pennsylvania countryside. When Autumn (Sidney Flanigan) learns she is pregnant, in a moment of crisis, she must navigate a maze of soulless procedures and face the acute lack of empathy from the patriarchal environment. Over time, it turns out the unplanned pregnancy is only one of Autumn's many problems, with a dark past lurking behind her. Although  Never Rarely Sometimes Always remains a bitter movie filled with the punk ethos of rebelling against reality, it does not for a moment slip into nihilism. An important theme is Autumn's relationship with a forgiving and eternally supportive cousin that flowers into a cinematic indictment of social hypocrisy, but also a subtle tale of the power of women's friendships.