20th Century Women

Set in Santa Barbara in 1979, this drama follows Dorothea Fields, a single mother in her mid-fifties raising her teenage son Jamie at a time of cultural upheaval. Worried about guiding him toward adulthood on her own, she turns to two younger women for help: Abbie, a punk artist who boards in the family home, and Julie, a neighbor close to Jamie's age. The three women offer him differing views on love, freedom and what it means to be a man, leaving Jamie to sort out his own beliefs.

Mike Mills wrote and directed the film, his fourth feature, arriving between Beginners and C'mon C'mon. Annette Bening plays Dorothea, with Elle Fanning as Julie, Greta Gerwig as Abbie, Billy Crudup as William and Lucas Jade Zumann as Jamie; Alison Elliott also appears. Anne Carey, Megan Ellison and Youree Henley produced for Annapurna Pictures, Archer Gray and Modern People.

Made for about 7 million dollars, the film took in roughly 6 million worldwide, a modest return against its cost. Audiences rate it 7.3 out of 10 on IMDb from around 52,000 votes and 7.3 out of 10 on TMDB from about 1,300 votes, while critics gave it 7.8 out of 10 across 229 reviews, so it drew consistently favorable responses.