This film is part of Rentals

Monica
Trace Lysette is captivating in this beautifully understated drama, playing a woman belatedly seeking to rekindle a relationship with her estranged mother.
Overview
Monica left her Midwestern hometown to transition so many years ago that she feels like a stranger returning. Her mother, Eugenia, banished her the moment she came out and there has been no attempt at reconciliation during the intervening years. But now Eugenia has dementia and is close to death. When the family are reunited, there are no sentimental speeches to kickstart the healing process. The film triumphs in capturing the notion that actions speak louder than words, as Monica gradually finds her place in the family and learns how to live in small-town American again. Patricia Clarkson is magnificent as Eugenia, but Lysette dominates – the actor finally cast in a feature role worthy of her prodigious talent.
Related

Driving Mum Driving Mum
Comedy 2022 113 mins Director: Hilmar Oddsson
Jon drives his mums corpse across Iceland in Hilmar Oddsson’s darkly comic odyssey of self-discovery and acceptance, beautifully filmed in crisp black and white.

Barrio Boy Barrio Boy
Romance 2022 83 mins Director: Dennis Shinners
A Latino barber embarks on an erotically charged odyssey of self-discovery over one hot summer in Brooklyn.

Small Things Like These Small Things Like These
Drama 2024 99 mins Director: Tim Mielants
Oscar-winner Cillian Murphy delivers a stunning performance as a coal merchant who discovers horrific secrets about his local convent.

Rafiki Rafiki
Drama 2018 83 mins Director: Wanuri Kahiu
Romantic sparks fly between the daughters of two opposing politicians in Wanuri Kahiu’s neon-bright story of forbidden love in Kenya.

Only the River Flows Only the River Flows
Crime 2023 102 mins Director: Shujun Wei
Shujun Wei's slow-burn noir draws us inexorably into its mysterious psychological journey.

The Critic The Critic
Thriller 2023 101 mins Director: Anand Tucker
Ian McKellen is in delicious form as London's most vicious critic, who strikes a Faustian pact with a struggling actor (Gemma Arterton).

Out of Blue Out of Blue
Crime 2019 109 mins Director: Carol Morley
Carol Morley (Dreams of a Life, The Falling) returns with a wonderfully stylised, offbeat noir thriller about a murder investigation and multiple realities.

The Bookshop The Bookshop
Drama 2017 113 mins Director: Isabel Coixet
Words run riot when a free-spirited bookseller (Emily Mortimer) introduces a sleepy town to a host of provocative literature

The Party The Party
Comedy 2017 71 mins Director: Sally Potter
Following some unexpected revelations, a celebration quickly takes a turn for the worse in Sally Potter's razor-sharp comedy.

Dust & Metal Dust & Metal
Documentary 2022 82 mins Director: Esther Johnson
Discover unfamiliar histories of Vietnam through Esther Johnson’s poetic documentary on the country’s love affair with the motorbike.

Mogwai: If the Stars Had a Sound Mogwai: If the Stars Had a Sound
Documentary 2024 91 mins Director: Antony Crook
Celestial sonic odyssey charting the cult Scottish band’s expansive career from the mid-90s to their tenth studio album written during lockdown.

Flow Flow
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2024 85 mins Director: Gints Zilbalodis
Oscar-winning animated adventure about an unlikely group of animals who must work together to survive a natural disaster.

Invasion Invasion
Science Fiction 1966 79 mins Director: Alan Bridges
An alien fugitive, injured in a road accident, pitches up at a rural hospital. But when two intergallactic pursuers arrive, things start to heat up...

Twiggy Twiggy
Documentary 2024 94 mins Director: Sadie Frost
International supermodel, actor, singer and one of the most iconic British figures – this is the real story of Twiggy.

Ernest Cole: Lost and Found Ernest Cole: Lost and Found
Documentary 2024 107 mins Director: Raoul Peck
Raoul Peck’s sorrowful portrait of Ernest Cole, the first photographer to expose the horrors of apartheid to the world.