WEEK IN WOMEN: Kate Winslet’s GOODBYE JUNE plays Christmas Day – Brandy McDonnell reports
Academy Award–winning actor Kate Winslet’s (The Reader, Titanic, Mare of Easttown) star-studded directorial debut Goodbye June is heading to Netflix.
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helen mirren
GOODBYE JUNE – Review by Loren King
Kate Winslet makes her directing debut and stars in Goodbye June, from a script by her son Joe Anders. He’s crafted a moving story about a large family forced to cope suddenly with a dying matriarch during the Christmas season. Messy, tender, funny — the film will be relatable for anyone who’s cared for a declining elder or spent time with loved ones in hospital rooms and experienced the gamut of bittersweet emotions that come with facing mortality.
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GOODBYE JUNE Review by Leslie Combemale
Kate Winslet’s directorial debut Goodbye June tells the story of a family grappling with the imminent loss of their matriarch June, played by Helen Mirren. Her cancer has returned with a vengeance. That causes the family to scramble to bring everyone together for a final goodbye and a celebration of the holiday early, so she can take part. Eldest child Julia ( Winslet) spearheads the planning, while 30-something unlaunched son Connor (Johnny Flynn) tries to stuff his sadness, and stay-at-home mom and middle child Molly (Andrea Riseborough) silently fumes she’s not as involved in the decisions. Family new ager Helen (Toni Collette) rushes to get home from LA. June’s ineffectual husband Bernie (Timothy Spall) just waits to be told what to do, all while nurse Angel (Fisayo Akinade), who is acting as an unofficial death doula, tries to keep June comfortable while focusing on giving the family a “good goodbye”.
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MOVIE OF THE WEEK December 12, 2025: GOODBYE JUNE
Humor and pathos go hand in hand in Kate Winslet’s moving directorial debut Goodbye June. As the film — written by Winslet’s son, Joe Anders — follows a boisterous British family preparing to say a final goodbye to their beloved wife/mother/grandmother, it reminds viewers that death is an inevitable part of life, something to be planned for and accepted with grace and love, if not necessarily welcomed with open arms.
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THE THURSDAY MURDER CLUB – Review by Susan Granger
If you’d enjoy an Agatha Christie-like whodunit mystery that’s set in someplace like The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, visit Netflix’s The Thursday Murder Club. Adapted by Katy Brand and Suzanne Heathcote from erudite Richard Osman’s best-sellers, it’s cleverly cast and deftly directed by Chris Columbus. Hopefully, the caper will become a miniseries.
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GOLDA – Review by Susan Granger
Oscar-winner Helen Mirren (The Queen) embodies Golda. Her skillful performance as Israel’s steely Prime Minister Golda Meir is startling to behold and a sure Academy Award contender. Israeli-American filmmaker Guy Nattiv’s docudrama focuses on the aftermath of the Yom Kippur War in 1973, when a coalition of Arab states, led by Egypt and Syria, surprise-attacked Israel on the most holy, contemplative day of the Jewish calendar. Utilizing a script by Nicholas Martin, Nattiv tells a tension-filled tale – one that was unknown until about 10 years ago when Top Secret government documents were declassified and 75 year-old Golda Meir’s suppressed anguish, deciding on a plan of action during that pivotal moment in history, was revealed.
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GOLDA – Review by Diane Carson
In 2023, how can a 100-minute film portray the complicated, multidimensional 1973 Yom Kippur War? For Israeli director Guy Nattiv in Golda, the answer consists of several elements. First, anchor the history in Prime Minister Golda Meir’s exceptional ability to navigate Arab-Israeli politics, her cabinet’s multiple conflicts, and her friendly but fraught relationship with U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. Golda is a significant film and history lesson. The cast advances every delicate nuance, with Helen Mirren as Golda, the anchor of every scene.
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GOLDA – Review by T.J. Callahan
Golda is not a biopic of the life of Golda Meir, the Israeli politician who helped found the state in 1948 and served as its fourth Prime Minister. Instead this film focuses on the powerful events surrounding the 1973 Yom Kippur War between Israel, Egypt and Syria when Golda was calling the shots as the Iron Lady head of state. Dame Helen Mirren, an indomitable force in her own right and no stranger to playing influential women, is Golda believably conveys the leader’s fierce spirit along with her quiet tenderness from the top of Meir’s chain smoking head all the way down to her sturdy orthopedic shoes.
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BARBIE – Review by Valerie Kalfrin
Like the doll’s copious wardrobe and accessories, the movie Barbie leaves lots to unpack—and probably more than people might expect. This funny, eye-catching film sports pitch-perfect performances from Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, paying tribute to the iconic toy while skewering the patriarchy and feminist window-dressing. It’s also a coming-of-age story about Barbie herself.
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FAST X – Review by Susan Granger
Fasten your seat belts! Fast X – the 10th installment in the Fast and Furious franchise – is just the first of a three-part finale revolving around continuing saga of street-racing vigilantes, headed by mumbling Dominic Toretto (Vin Diesel). No longer satisfied with L.A, drag racing, the action-packed locations include stunts and demolition in Rome, London, Rio de Janeiro, Antarctica and outer space (not really!) – on a $340 million budget.
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