As the critics observe in their reviews, this movie needs patience on the part of the viewer. Those who like gritty movies with lots of realism (like Moonlight) might like this one. It is not necessarily my preferred genre-I watched it because I like Idris Elba and figured he could not do something without merit so late in his career. It certainly is a genre bender and there is nothing cookie cutter about it. Very different from anything you would associate with Elba. If you have not watched the movie, there are some spoilers ahead, and I do suggest reading at least movie critics before watching because, it only started to make sense to me after I did some digging. As you can see from the reviews, many of us are left puzzled, wondering what it was all about. I can tell you that after watching, I had to do a bit of digging to get a better understanding of the storyline. Then I went back and finished watching from start to finish (at first I watched in fast forward, then I watched bits and pieces in rewind, so I had a very bad impression of the movie).
Apparently, the idea is that we are asked the question, what would happen if a modern day lower-middle class British woman found herself miraculously pregnant? we then experience the repercussions for herself and her family. All this while very little is said out loud about the pregnancy itself as we feel its full impacts on these people, on how they view themselves, how they treat the mysteriously pregnant mother, and on how she deals (or not) with unanswered questions. The reality is not pretty (nor would it be in a real life situation where a mysterious pregnancy occurred within a marriage). There are no answers because the woman herself does not know how she got pregnant, and neither can any other person in her life come up with a plausible explanation (except to call her crazy, unfaithful, etc, none of which are true). Jacqueline's aloneness in her time of need is palpable. While her mother, father and sister support her, they are too distant to be of any real help during critical moments. I don't usually like sad, gritty movies, but this one had redeeming grace at the end because, without explanation, the brutish husband decided to accept his wife and new child. Jerome, the son, while not supporting his mother during her pregnancy, went ahead and accepted his new sister and mother, in spite of all the bullying, anger, and loneliness he underwent while his mother was pregnant. To me, the movie demonstrates that the human spirit is resilient in the face of unanswerable questions. It is not really about redemption or forgiveness. There is nothing to forgive, and no one did anything wrong. But you are asked to think about love, trust, and acceptance. Very thought provoking.
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| Additional DVD options | Edition | Discs | Price | New from | Used from |
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July 6, 2015 "Please retry" | — | 1 | $19.79 | $13.81 |
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Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on December 29, 2017
Reviewed in the United States on February 11, 2016
Reviewed in the United States on April 26, 2016
Reviewed in the United States on May 7, 2018
Reviewed in the United States on February 23, 2019
Reviewed in the United States on January 27, 2017
Top reviews from other countries
Tony Laforce
Black Family Life - Worth A watch
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 18, 2015Jimmy Lazers
Frustratingly inaudible dialogue with no subtitles
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 19, 2015GCS
Interesting story, Hard to understand dialog, UK DVD version has no subtitles!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 19, 2017