X
- 2016
- R
- IFC Films
- 1 h 47 m
- 2016
- R
- IFC Films
- 1 h 47 m
Summary This look at three women striving to forge their own paths amidst the wide-open plains of the American Northwest follows a lawyer (Laura Dern) who finds herself contending with both office sexism and a hostage situation; a wife and mother (Michelle Williams) whose determination to build her dream home puts her at odds with the men in her...
Directed By: Kelly Reichardt
Written By: Maile Meloy, Kelly Reichardt
- 2016
- R
- IFC Films
- 1 h 47 m
- 2016
- R
- IFC Films
- 1 h 47 m
Certain Women
6.2
Where to Watch
Summary This look at three women striving to forge their own paths amidst the wide-open plains of the American Northwest follows a lawyer (Laura Dern) who finds herself contending with both office sexism and a hostage situation; a wife and mother (Michelle Williams) whose determination to build her dream home puts her at odds with the men in her...
Directed By: Kelly Reichardt
Written By: Maile Meloy, Kelly Reichardt
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
Based on 38 Critic Reviews
82
89% Positive
34 Reviews
34 Reviews
8% Mixed
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
3% Negative
1 Review
1 Review
Metascore
Universal Acclaim
Based on 38 Critic Reviews
82
89% Positive
34 Reviews
34 Reviews
8% Mixed
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
3% Negative
1 Review
1 Review
Stewart does an intriguing job creating a paradoxical character who explains herself without giving of herself, her very persona exposing the false promise of personal exposition.
Reichardt has crafted another deeply felt and beautifully ambiguous meditation on contemporary life in the far corners of the American heartland.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 71 User Ratings
6.2
49% Positive
35 Ratings
35 Ratings
32% Mixed
23 Ratings
23 Ratings
18% Negative
13 Ratings
13 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 71 User Ratings
6.2
49% Positive
35 Ratings
35 Ratings
32% Mixed
23 Ratings
23 Ratings
18% Negative
13 Ratings
13 Ratings
It is clear by its mixed reviews that this film is a very acquired taste. This film feels less like a film and more like a painting to me. Every frame has been so thoughtfully put together that time is needed for the viewer to take in what they are watching. Certain Women isn't meant to have a groundbreaking story. The benign nature of the narrative reminds the audience of the subtleties of life. To make a film this beautiful, Reichardt had to make it simple. If there was a complex and intense narrative going on them so much of what the film fights for would be lost. There is nothing to be distracted by in this film, allowing you to be completely present as you watch.
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I remember I worked the premiere of this movie at Sundance in 2016 and it really resonated with me in a way that not many other films had. A movie I was really glad I stuck with and immediately made me a fan of Reichardt and offered what I thought was Kristen Stewart’s best performance to date. I hope more people discover this movie after First Cow(Which I have yet to see) and visit some of her other works like Meeks Cutoff.
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Kelly Reichardt makes films that unfold at the speed of life, not Hollywood. She's a poet of the space between words, and the hypnotic and haunting Certain Women presents the writer-director at her artfully attentive best.
The acting is good throughout the film, but Gladstone and Stewart are a step up from everyone else. It’s tempting to say it could have been a feature all on its own, but as it stands it’s nearly perfect, making an already solid Certain Women that much better.
Certain Women is a deft masterclass in humane open-ended observation, crafting subtle portraits of three Montana women overlooked and hardy in their own individual ways.
It’s an ode to this country’s oft-forgotten middle, where the struggle is, indeed, very real. As such, Certain Women is not always thrilling, but it’s certainly faithful.
Comprising three separate, unrelated and thoroughly inconsequential short stories about lonely, miserable women in the isolated landscape of Montana, Certain Women is the latest thumping bore from Kelly Reichardt, a writer-director-editor who makes bland, low-budget films about various hidden aspects of women’s lives they are reluctant to reveal, then take forever to do so.
Kelly Reichardt, who has had a strong directorial track record of small, high-acclaimed, understated, character-driven films—for me a notable standout being a terrific little western from 2010 called Meek’s Cutoff—added to her career resume in 2015 with another impressive feat: Certain Women. With this film she has solidified herself as one of the best American, female directors—or maybe of either gender—of independent films out there right now. The plotline involves three loosely-interconnected stories of women depicting their struggles within their work, their life goals, their romances etc. High-class female talent in Laura Dern, Kristen Stewart, and the always fantastic Michelle Williams are put to wonderful use, not really with huge dramatic scenes (though some characters around them provide us that element) but with solid, realistic, and non-showy portrayals of women in life’s twists and turns. If you haven’t yet seen a Reichardt movie, this would be an excellent first experience. Along with Meek’s Cutoff, I’d also recommend her Old Joy; and I look forward to seeing her most recent release First Cow, just released earlier this year.
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This is a very artsy, very melancholy movie, intentionally slow and beautifully shot.
It is about loneliness and unsuccessful attempts to connect with other people.
The movie consists of three separate lines that very loosely relate to each other.
There are excellent actors there who for the most part do not have much to play.
I really enjoyed some parts of the film while others seemed too long and pointless.
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Very disappointing. I am not pleased to report that Rex Reed nails it pretty well. I like movies that are slow, unusual, and that strive to define personalities and moods. The performances were good and the movie is generally technically adequate, but for all the time allotted to the three women their true personalities don't emerge much and it all seems pointless and unfocussed. I kept wanting it to all come together, and it just does not. Sorry, don't waste your time on this one.
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Production Company
Film Science,
Glass Eye Pix,
Stage 6 Films
Release Date Oct 14, 2016
Duration 1 h 47 m
Rating R
Genres
Tagline Four women striving to forge their own paths amidst the wide-open plains of the American Northwest.
Awards
Women Film Critics Circle Awards
• 7 Nominations
Chlotrudis Awards
• 1 Win & 4 Nominations
International Cinephile Society Awards
• 1 Win & 4 Nominations
