Juniper

Matthew J. Saville's 2021 New Zealand film begins when a teenager suspended from boarding school is made to look after his grandmother as a punishment. Ruth is a former war photographer with a broken leg, confined to a wheelchair and drinking gin all day. Her grandson Sam has not recovered from his mother's death and is harming himself. The relationship between them is built not on kindness but on mutual harshness; Ruth does not console and Sam does not pity. The film delays the reconciliation the family-film shape would demand and does not avoid the real conditions of old age and dying. Charlotte Rampling makes no attempt to render the character likeable, and her performance is at the centre. Images of the New Zealand countryside give a calm background. Who it's for: viewers who like intergenerational drama and measured films. Who it's not for: anyone who would rather not approach alcoholism, suicidal thought and the facing of death.