‘Goodbye June’: Kate Winslet’s Directorial Debut Gathers Around a Dying Matriarch With Familiar Family Dysfunction 

Alci Rengifo

Kate Winslet’s “Goodbye June” is a family affair in nearly every aspect. The plot is one of those recognizable heart-tuggers about a clan of relatives coming together to process their issues while an elder passes away. Winslet is directing a screenplay written by her 21-year-old son, Joe Anders. Because it is Winslet in director’s chair, some notable talent signed on to this project. Helen Mirren alone merits attention. That is about all that really justifies this film, which delivers heartfelt performances within the most formulaic drama imaginable. 

Dysfunctional families (is there any other kind?) are one of cinema’s oldest tools for life lessons. The relatives of “Goodbye June” are rounded up at the beginning of the story when their mother, June (Mirren) goes to the hospital with doctors giving her little time to live because of an aggressive cancer. She likely won’t make it to Christmas. This prompts her grown children to make haste. They include Julia (Winslet), the most financially secure of the bunch and therefore a neurotic workaholic, Molly (Andrea Riseborough), a classic suburban mom living under constant stress, Helen (Toni Collette), a New Age type who decided to get pregnant in middle age, and Connor (Johnny Flynn), the youngest sibling who hasn’t quite found his footing in the world. June’s husband, Bernard (Timothy Spall), tries to brush away the sorrow of it all with his dry humor or hiding out at a local pub. As June’s life slowly fades away in her hospital bed, the various family members grapple with unfinished business and rekindling their love, etc. 

Aside from the fact that her son (with acclaimed director Sam Mendes) penned the script, what was the appeal for Winslet to helm this as her debut? “Goodbye June” plays it safe even in its visual language, which is a standard series of set ups where you just knock out a close-up, then a wide shot, and vice versa. As a writer, Anders’ dialogue sounds believable as everyday chatter, but it lacks the painful sincerity of last year’s “His Three Daughters.” Much of the drama is a series of actions as opposed to truly layering the characters. We learn little about each sibling, aside from the surface details of one being a disciplined corporate type and the other a total mess. Their motions are as we expect, with everyone by the end facing their insecurities and realizing they have the strength to carry on.

The performances truly raise the material because they give it a depth sometimes lacking. Mirren is quite endearing as the fading matriarch who endures the daily humiliations of a withering body. She can only smell her favorite snack because her bowels don’t function anymore. A standout performance next to Mirren is Fisayo Akinade as the absurdly-named Nurse Angel. Akinade evokes such tenderness and friendship with his patient, giving Winslet some of her best material when the editing cuts to his tearing eyes at just the right, subtle moments. Johnny Flynn is also great as the husband with working class gruff, who can’t admit this must all be unbearably sad. When he runs to a pub and is chased by Connor, only to sing a karaoke rendition of June’s favorite song, “Georgia,” he brings out the sincerity the best of these stories can have. 

Everyone else is good despite juggling what amounts to clichés. Of course, Helen is the hippie who realizes she wasted away so much time partying, now feeling scared about having a child later than the norm. Connor finally must grow up. Molly endures a few breakdowns before finding some peace and their children are young witnesses to adult conflicts. The best moment comes near the end, when the family realizes June is now truly nearing the end and they stage an early Nativity play for her in the hospital room. Winslet captures some genuine warmth here, making up for how the narrative never truly goes anywhere surprising. She clearly has the skills to direct, bringing out strong deliveries from her cast and making the environment vivid. For the next one she might want to get bolder and keep it out of the family.

“Goodbye June” releases Dec. 12 in select theaters and begins streaming Dec. 24 on Netflix.