Herself (film)

{{Infobox film

| name = Herself

| image = Herself.jpg

| caption = Film poster

| director = Phyllida Lloyd

| producer = {{Plainlist|

Rory Gilmartin
Ed Guiney
Sharon Horgan

}}

| writer = {{Plainlist|

Malcolm Campbell
Clare Dunne

}}

| starring = {{Plainlist|

}}

| music = Natalie Holt

| cinematography = Tom Comerford

| editing = Rebecca Lloyd

| production_companies = {{Plainlist|

Fís Éirann/Screen Ireland
BBC Films
BFI
Cornerstone Films
Element Pictures
Merman Films

}}

| distributor = {{Plainlist|

Picturehouse Entertainment (United Kingdom){{cite web|title=Herself (2020)|website=BBFC|access-date=13 September 2021|url=https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/herself-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc00otk0mdc}}
Element Pictures (Ireland){{cite web|title=Herself (2021)|website=Irish Film Classification Office|access-date=13 September 2021|url=http://www.ifco.ie/en/ifco/pages/2F8ED2CD004D8540|archive-date=1 March 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230301070058/https://www.ifco.ie/en/ifco/pages/2F8ED2CD004D8540|url-status=dead}}
Amazon Studios (United States)

}}

| released = {{Film date|df=yes|2020|1|24|Sundance}}

| runtime = 97 minutes{{cite web|url=https://www.sundance.org/projects/herself|title=Herself|website=Sundance Film Festival|access-date=27 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200127150449/https://www.sundance.org/projects/herself|archive-date=2020-01-27}}

| country = {{Plainlist|

United Kingdom
Ireland

}}

| language = English

| budget =

| gross =

}}

Herself is a 2020 drama film directed by Phyllida Lloyd, from a screenplay by Malcolm Campbell and Clare Dunne. The film stars Dunne, Harriet Walter and Conleth Hill.

Herself had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on 24 January 2020 and was released in the United States in a limited release on 30 December 2020, followed by digital streaming on Amazon Prime Video on 8 January 2021 by Amazon Studios.

Premise

Single mother Sandra has been struggling to get by with her two young daughters after leaving her abusive husband. Housed in state-funded hotel accommodation, Sandra decides to build her own house with the help of a friendly community and a handful of new friends. With this new purpose, Sandra rediscovers herself: that is until her abusive former husband sues her for custody of the children.

Cast

{{Cast listing|

Clare Dunne as Sandra
Harriet Walter as Peggy
Conleth Hill as Aido
Molly McCann as Molly
Ruby Rose O'Hara as Emma
Cathy Belton as Jo
Rebecca O'Mara as Grainne
Ericka Roe as Amy
Ian Lloyd Anderson as Gary
Seán Duggan as Ciaran Crowley
Aaron Lockhart as Tomo
Anita Petry as Rosa
Dmitry Vinokurov as Dariusz

}}

Production

In March 2019, it was announced Phyllida Lloyd would direct the film, from a screenplay by Malcolm Campbell and Clare Dunne, and that Dunne would also star in the film.{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2019/03/favourite-element-sharon-horgan-merman-housing-crisis-herself-clare-dunne-1202570455/|title='The Favourite' Producer Element Teams With Sharon Horgan's Merman On Next Movie: Female-Fronted Drama 'Herself'|website=Deadline Hollywood|first=Andreas|last=Wiseman|date=7 March 2019|access-date=27 January 2020}} In April 2019, Conleth Hill and Harriet Walter joined the cast of the film.{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2019/film/news/phyllida-lloyd-herself-clare-dunne-element-pictures-cornerstone-films-merman-sharon-horgan-1203197728/|title=Phyllida Lloyd's 'Herself' Adds Cast, Cornerstone Boards Sales (EXCLUSIVE)|website=Variety|first=Stewart|last=Clarke|date=25 April 2019|access-date=27 January 2020}}

Release

It had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on 24 January 2020.{{cite web|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/sundance-2020-unveils-female-powered-lineup-taylor-swift-gloria-steinem-films-1259538?|title=Sundance Unveils Female-Powered Lineup Featuring Taylor Swift, Gloria Steinem, Abortion Road Trip Drama|website=The Hollywood Reporter|first=Tatiana|last=Siegel|date=4 December 2019|access-date=27 January 2020}} Shortly after, Amazon Studios acquired U.S. distribution rights to the film.{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2020/01/amazon-announces-herself-deal-1202842478/|title=Amazon Announces 'Herself' Deal: Sundance|website=Deadline Hollywood|first=Mike Jr.|last=Fleming|date=26 January 2020|access-date=27 January 2020}} It was released in the United States in a limited release on 30 December 2020, followed by digital streaming on Amazon Prime Video on 8 January 2021.{{cite news|url= https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2020-11-19/movie-release-calendar-netflix-wonder-woman#nt=0000016b-7566-de3b-abeb-f57f19e00002-7030col1|title= Yes, Virginia, there are movies this holiday season. Here's where to find them|work=The Los Angeles Times|date=19 November 2020|access-date=19 November 2020}}

Reception

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of {{RT data|score}} based on {{RT data|count}} reviews, with an average rating of {{RT data|average}}. The website's critics consensus reads: "Sensitively directed by Phyllida Lloyd and brought to life by co-writer Clare Dunne's stunning performance, Herself charts one woman's journey with empathy and grace."{{Cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/herself|title=Herself (2020)|website=Rotten Tomatoes|publisher=Fandango|access-date={{RT data|access date}}|archive-url=|archive-date=}} Metacritic reports a score of 71 out of 100, based on 19 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".{{Cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/herself|title=Herself Reviews|website=Metacritic|publisher=CBS Interactive|access-date=March 15, 2021}}