Certain Women

Utilising her considerable gift for understatement, writer/director Kelly Reichardt (Meek's Cutoff) brings to screen three of Maile Meloy's short stories that celebrate the quiet heroism of those who dare to go against the grain. Certain Women is set against the backdrop of small-town Montana, its imposing vistas dwarfing the human drama, the attitudes of its inhabitants as old and immovable as the hills. Michelle Williams plays a woman supervising the construction of her home; Laura Dern is a lawyer dealing with a volatile and disrespectful client; while Kristen Stewart is a recent law school graduate enduring an arduous commute who attracts the eye of Lily Gladstone's lonely rancher. With the help of an exemplary cast, Reichardt captures these hard-grafting, worn-out women as they are dismissed, undermined or exploited - their acts of romantic and professional courage playing out with sometimes heartbreaking believability. The director documents her protagonists' struggles using compassion and deceptive artistry. Although she shows restraint in the moment, the film's simple and truthful humanity will resonate long afterwards.