Monica

Name: Monica
Genre: Drama
Released: May 12, 2023
Duration: 106 min
Rating: 75
Cast: Adriana Barraza, Ali Amine, Bobby Easley, Brittany Picard, Bryant Bentley

2023

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 15 Critic Reviews

See All

USER SCORE

No score yet

tbd

VOTE NOW

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

tbd	Your Score
tbd	User Score No score yet

Would you like to write a review?

There is a 75 character minimum for reviews. If your review contains spoilers, please check the Spoiler box. Please do not use ALL CAPS. There is no linking or other HTML allowed. Your review may be edited for content. 0/5000

Check box if your review contains spoilers

Play Sound

Please enter your birth date to watch this video:

You are not allowed to view this material at this time.

Monica

Now Playing: Monica

Movie Details & Credits

IFC Films | Release Date: May 12, 2023 | Not Rated

Starring: Adriana Barraza, Ali Amine, Bobby Easley, Brittany Picard, Bryant Bentley, Emily Browning, Jean Zarzour, Jenny McManus, Joshua Close, Karen Olchovy, Patricia Clarkson, Trace Lysette, Vladimir John Perez

Summary: A woman returns home to care for her ailing mother who she hasn't seen in years in this tender portrait of family, forgiveness, and acceptance.

Director: Andrea Pallaoro

Genre(s): Drama

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 106 min

See All Details and Credits

Watch Now

Stream On

Expand

Metascore

Positive:

Mixed:

Negative:

Critic Reviews

100

RogerEbert.com Peter Sobczynski

May 11, 2023

A quiet, heartfelt, and beautifully nuanced drama that feels unique and universal, featuring what will surely go down as one of the best performances of 2023. Read full review

Teo Bugbee

May 11, 2023

Both Lysette and Clarkson are naturally magnetic actors, and they don’t waste the attention they’re given on excess sentimentality. Read full review

IndieWire Jude Dry

Sep 16, 2022

Spare but poignant, "Monica" is a pensive family drama that’s loaded with the empty space of things left unsaid. Read full review

The Playlist Marshall Shaffer

Sep 16, 2022

At its best, Pallaoro’s quiet film wields the paradoxical power of cinema to create pure illusion. Read full review

Wes Greene

May 7, 2023

Monica is an unsentimental exploration of its main character’s search for personal fulfillment through human connection. Read full review

Fionnuala Halligan

Sep 16, 2022

A quietly thoughtful and impressively acted drama. Read full review

Jon Frosch

Sep 16, 2022

A sluggish exercise in formalism ... [Monica] feels like a movie perpetually struggling to connect. Read full review

SEE ALL 15 REVIEWS

Write a Review

Mixed:

User Reviews

Brent_Marchant

Jun 26, 2023

Acceptance, reconciliation and forgiveness are arguably among the hardest feelings for many of us to deal with, but coming to terms with them is by no means impossible. When Monica (Trace Lysette), a transgender woman kicked out by her family as an adolescent, leaves her Midwestern home andAcceptance, reconciliation and forgiveness are arguably among the hardest feelings for many of us to deal with, but coming to terms with them is by no means impossible. When Monica (Trace Lysette), a transgender woman kicked out by her family as an adolescent, leaves her Midwestern home and heads to California to start a new life, she struggles to get by. And, after years of effort, she indeed manages to work it out for the most part. But, years later, when Monica’s sister-in-law (Emily Browning) informs her that her long-estranged mother (Patricia Clarkson) is terminally ill, she’s torn about what to do. Should she ignore the news or step up as a dutiful child? She reluctantly relents and heads back to Ohio to help care for the woman who threw her out of the house, a situation made more complex by the fact that her mother’s malignant brain tumor has seriously affected her memory, leaving her unaware of the identity of the new caregiver who has suddenly appeared in her life. Writer-director Andrea Pallaoro’s third feature outing presents a deftly nuanced, sensitively handled story of a family painfully torn apart trying to put itself back together again under trying circumstances and while there’s still time. The pacing comes across as somewhat slow (undoubtedly by design), so those expecting material that moves along at a brisk, breezy may not find it to their liking, but, given the profound nature of the subject matter, it suits the narrative perfectly. There are admittedly a few plotline gaps here and there, but they’re more than adequately compensated for by the film’s superb ensemble cast, razor-sharp writing and gorgeous, atmospheric cinematography. “Monica” may not have received much fanfare upon its theatrical release earlier this year, but this fine streaming offering is well worth the time, providing viewers with a moving cinematic experience that many of us can probably relate to – and whose wisdom should be thoughtfully considered should the need arise in one’s life.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

SEE ALL 1 REVIEWS