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Herself

Play trailer 2:31 Poster for Herself R Released Dec 30, 2020 1h 37m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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94% Tomatometer 140 Reviews 84% Popcornmeter 100+ Ratings
Single mother Sandra (Clare Dunne) escapes her abusive partner with her two young children, only to find herself trapped in temporary accommodation. After months of struggling, she draws inspiration from one of her daughter’s bedtime stories and hits upon the idea of self-building an affordable home. She finds an architect who provides her with plans and is offered land by Peggy (Harriet Walter), a woman she cleans for. Aido (Conleth Hill), a building contractor, appears willing to help, too. But as her past rears its head in the form of Gary (Ian Lloyd Anderson), her possessive ex, and as bureaucrats fight back against her independent spirit, will Sandra be able to rebuild her life from the ground up?
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Herself

Herself

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Critics Consensus

Sensitively directed by Phyllida Lloyd and brought to life by co-writer Clare Dunne's starring performance, Herself charts one woman's journey with empathy and grace.

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Critics Reviews

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Christina Newland iNews.co.uk Herself stays formally interesting in its use of jagged flashback structure and a woe-filled but fiery monologue about the treatment of women, wives and mothers from Dunne. Rated: 3/5 Sep 23, 2024 Full Review Mark Kermode Kermode & Mayo's Film Review It's got foundations rooted in reality. The body off the house is in-between the dream and the fulfillment, and it's roof has its head in the air...I enjoyed it very much. Sep 21, 2021 Full Review Donald Clarke Irish Times Lloyd makes something genuinely nightmarish of the worst attacks, but Dunne's creased vulnerability ... keeps us tethered to waking reality. Rated: 4/5 Sep 17, 2021 Full Review Annlee Ellingson CineWomen Phyllida Lloyd’s Herself is a modest Irish movie about a single mom who builds a little house for herself and her two young daughters. Sweet enough, but the circumstances that motivate her plan ... throb with urgent topicality. Jul 28, 2024 Full Review M.N. Miller Ready Steady Cut Clare Dunne gives a resilient and empowering performance. Rated: 3.5/5 Sep 11, 2022 Full Review Keith Garlington Keith & the Movies “Herself” is an interesting mix of clear-eyed movie realism and life-affirming drama. Rated: 4/5 Aug 17, 2022 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Saundra H E the storyline and acting was job well done Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/03/21 Full Review First L Horrible movie!!!!! !!!!!! Rated 1 out of 5 stars 01/06/21 Full Review Stephen C 1 hour and 37 minutes of drama. Rated R for Some Domestic Violence and Language!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rated 5 out of 5 stars 05/27/25 Full Review Six S A highly watchable film for the most part. The domestic violence is absolutely understandable, the broken eye I have had too so it's horribly real. Building a house because the council can't is a bit ridiculous isn't it. Not feasible usually, she could because she picked up her cleaning client off the floor? The older lady didn't even give a reason why she gave all the money, some backstory is missing/cut from the film. The court scenes were silly because nobody shouts out like that, they don't. It's daft to do so, I wish films would be more real about that. Anyway, I liked it in the first half, it gripped me. The rest is meh but overall I did sort of like it. No idea of the main actresses' name, but she portrayed an abused woman very well. The way she was almost scared to talk to anyone is very real. Plus, I know the injury isn't real but mine is better now. In summary, good depiction of DV, nonsense of house building. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 05/05/25 Full Review Maura D It's a very engaging movie. It shows what can happen if people don't just judge. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 08/27/23 Full Review Audience Member Outstanding performances keep "Herself" from being just another formulaic movie about a mother trying to establish a home for her and her children after leaving an abusive lowlife husband. Claire Dunne is especially impressive as the abused wife who had the strength to leave. The girls who play her daughters were also great, seemingly actual sisters in real life by their interaction and natural chemistry with one another. 3 stars Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/20/23 Full Review Read all reviews
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Cast & Crew

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Phyllida Lloyd

Director

Clare Dunne

Sandra

Harriet Walter

Peggy

Conleth Hill

Aido

Cathy Belton

Jo

Rebecca O'Mara

Grainne

Movie Clips

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Herself

Herself: Movie Clip - Take the Land Herself: Movie Clip - Take the Land 1:40 View more videos

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Herself

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Movie Info

Synopsis Single mother Sandra (Clare Dunne) escapes her abusive partner with her two young children, only to find herself trapped in temporary accommodation. After months of struggling, she draws inspiration from one of her daughter’s bedtime stories and hits upon the idea of self-building an affordable home. She finds an architect who provides her with plans and is offered land by Peggy (Harriet Walter), a woman she cleans for. Aido (Conleth Hill), a building contractor, appears willing to help, too. But as her past rears its head in the form of Gary (Ian Lloyd Anderson), her possessive ex, and as bureaucrats fight back against her independent spirit, will Sandra be able to rebuild her life from the ground up?
Director
Phyllida Lloyd
Producer
Rory Gilmartin, Ed Guiney, Sharon Horgan
Screenwriter
Malcolm Campbell, Clare Dunne
Distributor
Amazon Studios
Production Co
Screen Ireland, British Film Institute, BBC Films, Element Pictures, Merman Films
Rating
R (Some Domestic Violence|Language)
Genre
Drama
Original Language
British English
Release Date (Theaters)
Dec 30, 2020, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Jan 8, 2021
Runtime
1h 37m
Aspect Ratio
Scope (2.35:1)
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