Back in June of this year, we brought you the news that Picturehouse Entertainment and Element Distribution were pleased to announce that the female-driven drama Herself, would be released into UK and Irish cinemas from Friday 10 September 2021.
The film received its world premiere to critical acclaim at Sundance Film Festival 2020 and received its UK premiere at the 2020 London Film Festival. Herself is directed by Phyllida Lloyd (The Iron Lady) and co-written by Clare Dunne who also stars in the film in what is her feature debut, alongside Harriet Walter (Killing Eve, Succession).
Herself follows the story of Sandra (Clare Dunne), who on the surface of it, is a young Mum struggling to provide her two young daughters with a warm, safe, happy home to grow up in. Beneath the surface, Sandra has a steely determination to change their lives for the better and when it becomes clear that there are no other options left to her, she decides to build it herself from scratch, drawing together a community of friends to support her. The supporting cast includes Conleth Hill (Game of Thrones) and Cathy Belton (Philomena).
Thanks to the latest Cineworld Unlimited Screening I got the chance to see the film on the big screen and I’m so glad that I did. Herself is such a powerful piece of filmmaking from Phyllida Lloyd, right from the start with the introduction of Sandra (Claire Dunn) and her daughters Molly (Molly McCann) and Emma (Ruby Rose O’hara) the film grabs hold of you and takes you on the emotional and at times funny journey of Sandra trying to start a new life away from her abusive husband (Ian Lloyd Anderson)
As a single mother, Sandra tries her best to keep her children clothed and fed, while all the time trying to keep up with the law with the visitation for her children with their father, but things start to look up when she decides to build her own house and with the help of Peggy (Harriet Walter) who she cleans for, she is given a piece of land at the back of Peggy’s property to build her own house.
Along the way, Sandra calls in help from a builder that her abusive husband used to work with and a team of friends that she has made during her time away from him. There are so many great moments in Herself and Clare Dunne and Malcolm Campbell have written a wonderful story of the challenge that women can face when trying to survive abuse.
Comedy elements lift your spirits as the film goes along and there are also plenty of emotional times that you feel that tear starting to build up or the anger inside as Gary (Anderson) tries to worm his way back and then tries to discredit Sandra in the courtroom.
HERSELF was co-written by Clare Dunne and Malcolm Campbell (What Richard Did). It was co-developed by Element Pictures and Merman and is produced by Academy Award® nominee Ed Guiney (The Favourite, The Lobster) and Rory Gilmartin (Rosie) for Element, together with BAFTA award-winning actress, writer, producer and director Sharon Horgan (Catastrophe, Divorce). Clelia Mountford (Motherland, There She Goes) from Merman, Element Pictures’ Andrew Lowe, BBC Films’ Rose Garnett, Cornerstone Films’ Alison Thompson, Mary Burke from the BFI and Lesley McKimm from Screen Ireland are executive producers. The film was developed with BBC Films and Screen Ireland and production was backed by Screen Ireland, BBC Films and the BFI (with National Lottery funding).
Herself is a wonderfully crafted film and a very powerful story with lots of emotion that takes you on a rollercoaster ride for 97mins. This is one of the most delightful films that I have seen this year (so far). Certainly worth checking out on the big screen.
Critically acclaimed HERSELF to be released on DVD, Blu-ray & Digital 17 January 2022.
Herself is a wonderfully crafted film and a very powerful story
Movie title: Herself
Movie description: A young mother escapes her abusive husband and fights back against a broken housing system. She sets out to build her own home and in the process rebuilds her life and re-discovers herself.
Date published: August 25, 2021
Country: UK
Duration: 1h 37min
Director(s): Phyllida Lloyd
Actor(s): Molly McCann, Clare Dunne, Ruby Rose O'Hara
Genre: Drama
Summary
Herself is a wonderfully crafted film and a very powerful story with lots of emotion that takes you on a rollercoaster ride for 97mins. Certainly worth checking out on the big screen.
Karen Woodham is the founder and owner of the Blazing Minds. She is also a Cinema reviewer and works with RealD 3D reviewing the latest 3D releases and IMAX, she has also had several articles published in various publications including the first edition of SFW Magazine. In 2015 she became an Award Winning Blogger and also has her website listed as one of the UK’s Top 10 Film Blogs.
