Most Christmas films are comedies or romances. In her directorial debut, Kate Winslet, has picked a family tragedy.
Goodbye June (2025), has been written by her son, Joe Anders, and inspired by the real-life passing of Winslet’s mother. It is a sensitive and sentimental exploration of “the long goodbye.”
Set against the cheer of the Christmas season, Goodbye June follows three self-centered sisters, who rush to the hospital to help their dutiful brother Connor (Johnny Flynn) and eccentric father Bernie (Timothy Spall) cope with the final days of their matriarch, June (Helen Mirren).
Julia (Kate Winslet) is the successful one, Molly (Andrea Riseborough) is the resentful one and Helen (Toni Collette) the aging hippie type, having a baby with no father in sight.
The three descend with their kids and noisily take over the hospital room, as if there were no other patients around. The cheerful nurse Angel (Fisayo Akinade) is always at their beck and call.
The doctors gently tell the family that they can only offer palliative care. Molly rudely refuses a hospice, but June refuses to go home, so they all take turns to be with her, and in the process heal their fractured relationship with one another.
For a film about dying, Goodbye June has moments of humour. June is not a pathetic victim-she is observant and sharp.
The film, which has the usual dysfunctional family cliches, is elevated by the performances. Winslet has assembled a powerhouses cast, with the wonderful Helen Miren leading the ensemble.
Kate Winslet is a fine actress herself and has proven to be a confident director as well, picking a difficult subject and making a film with empathy and an eye for detail.
Goodbye June
Directed by Kate Winslet
Cast: Helen Mirren, Timothy Spall, Toni Collette, Kate Winslet and others
On Netflix
Directed by Kate Winslet
Cast: Helen Mirren, Timothy Spall, Toni Collette, Kate Winslet and others
On Netflix
