For those of us who grew up in the seventies, 20TH CENTURY WOMEN is a time capsule of that very different, much more innocent time in America. Our clothes were horrible, we were a LOT less sensitive and a lot more carefree, all traits well demonstrated by this great cast as adept at comedy as they are drama.
Annette Bening is fantastic as Dorothea, a free-spirit single mom raising her teenage son Jamie in a large rambling California house.
Jamie is a curious, quiet and caring teen, perfectly played by young Lucas Jade Zumann in an amazing performance.
Dorothea's home is so large, she takes on boarders like strays, all of whom become influential in raising Jamie.
Elle Fanning is Julie, the beautiful blonde neighbor who's a buddy to Jamie that he cant help but fall in love with at every turn.
Greta Gerwig (Jackie) is excellent as Abbie, a troubled young woman who provides the dark ying influence to the bubbly yang of Julie.
Billy Crudup rounds out the cast as handyman William, whose work on the house seems to never end. Crudup (Watchmen, Alien:Covenant) captures the complete hippie spirit of the 70's, cracking Dorothea up with his "I'm at one with the Earth" vibes that she can't take serious at any level.
At the center of the film is Bening as Dorothea, and its one of her best performances. Bening is aging gracefully, without all the surgery and Botox that's turning older Hollywood into wax figures that barely resemble their younger selves.
Without a false move, Bening creates a real woman that you'll cheer for as she does her best trying to raise Jamie with the help of people she thinks will offer him different perspectives.
20TH CENTURY WOMEN is from writer/director Mike Mills and for me it's his best film to date. He writes dialogue/conflict and very funny scenes the way people really talk.
By the time the film wraps up, you'll want to spend more time with this eclectic, funny bunch of people, all searching for the right path ahead.
20TH CENTURY WOMEN gets an A.
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