Review of Never Rarely Sometimes Always (2020) by Chrismizerak — 11 Jun 2020

“Never Rarely Sometimes Always” is one of the most disappointing bore fests I have seen in a long time. Now before I make my case as to why its critical praise is not even close to justified, my objection of this film has nothing to do with its subject matter.

Its story about a troubled teenage girl, played by Sidney Flanigan, who discovers she is pregnant and wants to get an abortion has strong dramatic potential and relevance in this day and age if done right.

I believe every woman is entitled to do what they think is right for them and if that means declining to be a mother against society’s wishes, then that is what they need to do moving forward. If it means preventing an abusive relationship from continuing or financial ruin for the people in question, then I unquestionably support their choice to take care of themselves over being manipulated into something they do not want.

Consider that my overall stance on abortion if you will. The reasoning for my disapproval of this picture stems from the fact that it takes such dramatically interesting concepts such as teenage pregnancy and abortion, but gives us a dull and lifeless experience that hardly does anything with it.

My criticism of “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” wasting time on a bunch of meaningless shots can be doubled or tripled in the case of “Never Rarely Sometimes Always”. At least through 50% of the running time, there are either shots where nothing much is happening at all or whatever is happening is beyond tedious.

I felt like I was at the doctor’s office, at the airport, or at school watching this sluggish material. Sure, it is realistic to what a woman going through with an abortion process would have to tackle.

But the film is in desperate need of either flashbacks or more interesting material to liven up the experience. Instead of focusing on an uneventful train ride for 10 to 20 minutes, why not incorporate some character development that gives us an idea for who these people are and what they value from life.

Give us some context into why this teenage girl is alienated by her family and her selfish father, and why her past sexual relationships have all ended sour, and tie up a bunch of loose ends that would make the experience more complete.

But alas, the moment the film’s ending came around, I somehow knew it was going to end at that moment and my biggest questions would not be answered. It has a completely unsatisfactory ending because it leaves many plot threads unresolved and just ends whenever it wants regardless if most folks watching it find the quality unacceptable.

Adding further insult to injury with a dissatisfying and underdeveloped story is its cast of equally dull and forgettable characters. I am going to call it right now. After having seen these characters yesterday, I am going to forget everything about them in a week.

If they stick with me further than that, I will be amazed. All I see from our leads is a bunch of frowning heads glued to their smartphones just like what I see in real life. If that were not enough to already get my blood boiling, their performances are super monotone and disinterested.

The main protagonist herself is a moody bore. Hardly anything about her as presented here makes me want to root for her in the slightest. Not just because she seems too miserable all around, but again, she is insultingly underdeveloped.

I cannot remember anything else behind her. I do not know what makes her happy, what her current goal in life is, how brutal her past is, and I am not sure if I am allowed to. In the end, that defeats the purpose of why we are being shown what we see.

You can make everyday life into a fascinating movie. “Boyhood” did this in the span of its decade long development covering the life of a boy from ages 8 to 18 in real time. You can experiment with different storytelling techniques.

You can elevate the material to the best of your ability while still staying true to life. If films like “Never Rarely Sometimes Always” are the “best” that this industry is capable of putting out, I have got news for you.

Video games and even some TV shows have gotten better in this century, and to be brutally honest, films are falling further behind through the same tired tendencies and trends. In the case of “Never Rarely Sometimes Always”, it is getting stuck in its artsy and pretentious ways while underutilizing and squandering the potential it originally generated.

There is a well-meaning film trying to get out of here somewhere advocating for the bravery woman who go through abortion have to follow through with it. That is an idea in and of itself I can get behind and an encouraging message women desperately need to hear.

But when the final product itself seems half-finished by the time its ending comes around, I am more than justified in feeling ripped off.