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Jim Broadbent, Lesley Manville, Ruth Sheen, Peter Wight, Oliver Maltman ... see more see more... , David Bradley , Karina Fernandez , Martin Savage , Michele Austin , Phil Davis , Stuart McQuarrie , Imelda Staunton , Eileen Davies , Mary Jo Randle , Ben Roberts , David Hobbs , Buddy Uzzaman , Meneka Das , Ralph Ineson , Edna Dore , Gary Powell , Lisa McDonald

British filmmaker Mike Leigh delivers another emotionally honest portrait of ordinary people trying to make sense of their lives in this comedy drama. Tom (Jim Broadbent) and Gerri (Ruth Sheen) are a ... read more read more...couple who are drifting past middle age into their sixties; he's a geologist and she's a psychotherapist. Tom and Gerri have a stable and happy marriage and a grown son, Joe (Oliver Maltman), an activist lawyer who hasn't settled down yet, much to his mother's chagrin. One of Gerri's co-workers and close friends is Mary (Lesley Manville), who puts up a facade of desperate good cheer despite the fact she's been very lonely since her husband left her and has been drowning her anxieties in wine. Gerri has unsuccessfully tried to fix Mary up with Tom's sloppy but good natured pal Ken (Peter Wight), and she's startled when Mary begins openly flirting with Joe, more than 20 years her junior. Mary's troubles only grow worse when she stops by Tom and Gerri's place only to be introduced to Katie (Karina Fernandez), Joe's new girlfriend. Another Year received its world premiere at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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72% liked it

18,862 ratings

Critics

92% liked it

157 critics

PG-13, 2 hr. 9 min.

Directed by: Mike Leigh

Release Date: December 29, 2010

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DVD Release Date: June 7, 2011

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Stats: 1,270 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (1,270)

  • fb1672039553
    March 17, 2012
    fb1672039553
    The husband and wife we follow are the essence of Buddha; they live in the moment, aware of the hysterical nature of reality, the delicacy of the human condition, and the sublime beauty of a simple life - tea, a garden, family, and friends. Like a magnet, they draw in people thro... read moreughout the year who are trying very hard to avoid living in the moment, and we watch them struggle, falling further with the help of various chemicals. This movie captures the genuine spontaneity and flow of life and shows what it looks like when good, albeit human people handle it with joy.
  • paulsandberg
    January 5, 2012
    paulsandberg
    Mike Leigh is truly an interesting writer and director. In "Another Year", he starts with a depressed character that is having trouble sleeping. All she wants from her MD is sleeping pills, but the MD insists that pills will only alleviate the symptoms, not address their cause.... read more So the woman reluctantly decides to see a psychologist. Ok - no big deal, right? But it is, because the woman is only a vehicle - setting a mood and introducing the audience to Geri, the psychologist. After her painful scene with Geri, the woman is never seen on film again. Wow! What a way to begin a film.

    So - we are introduced to Geri, and an office co-worker Mary, a middle aged divorcee who is having problems dealing with the single life. She tries way too hard at everything, drinks too much, and frankly, is quite a mess. Mary (in a truly marvelous performance by Leslie Manville) is truly the focus of the film, but really, Leigh has more stories to tell, some more subtle than others.

    We are introduced to Geri's husband Tom (the always brilliant Jim Broadbent), and their circle of friends and relatives. Each character has a story to tell, and there is much sadness here; especially concerning ageing and the horrible thought of being alone and adrift, unable to truly connect to those around you. I couldn't help but notice during the film that it seemed that Geri (the psychologist) and Tom seemed to be the only truly stable people around, and they spend their time observing the world around them, secure in the fact that they are comfortable with each other.

    So much of what is viewed here is depressing, as it should be - the topic of ageing, and the fear of being alone (after all, we're supposed to be social creatures, right?), are not subjects filled with sunshine. And yet Leigh balances this with hope, in the form of a new and seemingly happy relationship established by Tom and Geri's son (which of course is yet another source of pain for someone else... but that's something you'll have to discover for yourself).

    Fine acting abounds here, from Ruth Sheen as Geri, to some of the minor characters, especially that of Tom's friend Ken. Peter Wright is amazing in his drunken, wounded soul - tormented by the fact that life has seemingly passed him by. He seems hell bent on self destruction - perhaps seeing it as the only way out of his misery. Truly epic in his sadness.

    The film moves slowly at times, allowing you to really feel the discomfort and distance that surrounds Tom and Geri's circle, but its not until the "winter" segment (yes, there are four segments - hence the title) - that the film begins to lose its way. After wallowing in enough pathos, the film heaps on a meal full (well, it is "winter" which is supposed to be a depressing time of year) - moving at a glacial pace until the final act, which isn't a resolution in any way shape or form - how could it be - this is a story about life... a messy thing that has no easy cures. It leaves you thinking, which I'm sure is what Leigh desired.
  • fb100001048934982
    July 5, 2011
    fb100001048934982
    The beautiful thing about Mike Leigh's 'Another Year' is that it accomplishes exactly what it wants to, and does so with grace and emotion. It may prove to be very alienating to some viewers with its slow pace and drawn-out dialogue. But that's the point. That's what Leigh wanted... read more. So may be very well made and very accomplished with great performances from the entire cast, but the film is wildly alienating. Many viewers will find it boring and not entertaining. A unique film for a very specific audience.
  • fb1400820048
    June 22, 2011
    fb1400820048
    [Short DVD Review] It's a brilliant movie, completely unforgiving and quite hopeful all at once. Here's hoping I can be Jim Broadbent when I grow up!
  • neverteaseaweasel
    June 20, 2011
    neverteaseaweasel
    I love Tom and Gerri! They are the type of couple that reaffirms faith in marriage, faith in family. Perhaps the best part being that we actually come across couples like this occasionally; they do not only exist on screen. Still, you just watch them and think "yeah, they have ev... read moreerything figured out!" They complement each other so perfectly. As for the movie itself. I liked it a lot, but at the same time, I felt that it needed something more. It just didn't leave me feeling all that much. It felt like it was saying more than it actually succeeded in communicating. Still, it's enjoyable, thoughtful, serene yet hilarious. I really loved it, but it still kind of fades from memory fast, just as quickly as day and weeks turn into years. A year can pass, within the time a lot can change, but ultimately each year is not so different from the one before; each moment should be enjoyed and cherish as it blends into the next.
  • itsjustme2004
    June 13, 2011
    itsjustme2004
    Another year? It felt like a year trying to get through this movie...yeesh! Slow. Uneventful. Pointless. A typical film that the critics loved. Go figure..
  • DrZeek
    June 7, 2011
    DrZeek
    Mary: You can't go around with a big sign saying don't fall in love with me I'm married.
    Tom: Well, most people wear a ring.
    Mary: Well he didn't.
  • Saxia
    May 31, 2011
    Saxia
    I love these sort of movies. It's structured around the 4 seasons, and we meet this couple and their family and close friends.
    It's about things not turning out the way you've hoped or expected, about how painful it is to see your loved ones struggle.

    Lesley Manville is phenome... read morenal as Mary.
  • jennifxu
    April 28, 2011
    jennifxu
    I'm as surprised as anyone else that I liked it so much. I do really think this is casted perfectly. Lesley Manville can in one light look so beautiful, in another look so old and depressed. Ruth Sheen is so funny looking but she can at times look really great. I can't bring myse... read morelf to care about a lot of Mike Leigh's characters but some of these situations touched me quite a bit.
  • shortcartoonist
    March 20, 2011
    shortcartoonist
    A year in the life. Mike Leigh's latest entry is still, calm, and tepid. With simple settings and plain characters - it is almost lethargic. But it is real. It's setting is simple but inviting, and its characters plain but wisened. They have lived lives, but realise their current... read more situation is not a part of the plan. Are they happy? Mostly no. A central character states that "change is hard" - those close to her know all-too-well.

    [Full review pending]

View All Another Year Reviews

Critic Reviews

Rafer Guzman
February 12, 2011
Rafer Guzman, Newsday

See it at your own risk -- but don't miss it. Full Review

Tom Long
February 4, 2011
Tom Long, Detroit News

Desperation and fulfillment, anxiety and warmth, pain and contentment -- all come together in the darkly splendid Another Year. Full Review

Peter Travers
February 3, 2011
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

Mike Leigh's films are one of a kind. Full Review

Chris Vognar
January 27, 2011
Chris Vognar, Dallas Morning News

Another marvel of perfectly drawn, fully realized characters created from the ground up and brought to aching and glorious life. Full Review

Carrie Rickey
January 27, 2011
Carrie Rickey, Philadelphia Inquirer

It all comes down to affirmation vs. denial. Leigh chooses affirmation. And the result is life-affirming. Full Review

Roger Moore
January 26, 2011
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel

It's not the most focused Leigh movie, but plot has never been his strong suit. Full Review

Lisa Kennedy
January 21, 2011
Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post

What a challenge it must be to mine our ordinary lives in ways that reveal and revel in the quietly meaningful. It is a challenge British writer-director Mike Leigh meets in Another Year. Full Review

Ann Hornaday
January 21, 2011
Ann Hornaday, Washington Post

Only Leigh could find so much pathos in ripe, rounded happiness... Full Review

Colin Covert
January 20, 2011
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune

It's a core sample of human experience in an average, regular year from spring through winter, with life and death and hope and disappointment layered atop one another. Full Review

Wesley Morris
January 20, 2011
Wesley Morris, Boston Globe

Leigh has found yet another way to express certain incompatibilities of class by framing them as emotional conflicts. Full Review

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Facts

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    • Gerri: On a scale of one to ten, how happy would you say you are, Janet?
    • Janet: One.
    • Gerri: One. I think there's room for improvement there, don't you?
    • Joe: And that's just for this household.
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Another Year Trivia

  • which actress has acted in a cheerleading film and in another played a 15 year old pregnant teenager.  Answer »
  • Actors Kevin Zegers and Lindy Booth played a couple in the 2003 horror movie "Wrong Turn". The following year they again played a couple in another horror movie. What is it?  Answer »

  • Kevin James is in Hitch with Will Smith and this year (2007) he's in a another comedy with Adam Sandler, which movie is it?  Answer »

  • Just had another mindless question who played the twins in the parent trap You have to know that there were actually TWO the parent trap ever made. So please, specify the year of the movie next time when you submit such a simple question, just in case there are numerous remakes!!!!  Answer »
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