Expect tears in this rebuild
THE BIG RELEASE HERSELF 15 ★★★★✩
ASINGLE mother (Clare Dunne) escapes her abusive partner with their two young daughters, only to find herself trapped in temporary accommodation. Wait – don’t turn away! Because, despite sounding harrowing, this little gem, shining with hope, is one of the year’s most inspirational dramas.
It starts with a gut punch. As Sandra (Dunne) is slammed down on to the kitchen floor by her violent long-time partner, Gary (an excellent Ian Lloyd Anderson), her children run to the shop, brandishing a long-prepared note: ‘Call 999 – my life is in danger.’ From then on, Sandra bravely struggles to keep the right side of breaking point. Working two jobs, living out of an airport hotel and battling with PTSD, she quickly gets sucked into the collapsing housing system.
But just when Herself is about to go full-on Ken Loach, Sandra gathers her courage and resolves on an unexpected way out: she will build her own house from scratch. All she needs is to find a plot of land and €35,000 – as well as some miraculously free manpower. Director Phyllida Lloyd negotiates the unpredictable shifts between stony and smooth with assurance. This is not an easy directorial gig and Lloyd keeps a firm yet sensitive grip on the story’s sentimental rudder: you will weep but those tears are thoroughly earned.
However, it’s an award-worthy turn from Dunne (who cowrote the script) that makes this so compelling. Sandra’s heroic resilience might border on the saintly were it not for Dunne’s integrity and nuance. This is her film all the way and, though that leaves some of the other characters a little under-realised, special mention goes to Conleth Hill as a heart-of-gold builder.
Above all, it’s a glowing tribute to the kindness of strangers. If you feel like you’ve got a lot on your plate right now, Herself should put it into perspective.