Vera Drake, the British period drama starring Imelda Staunton and Daniel Mays, has landed a new streaming home in the UK. From acclaimed writer-director Mike Leigh, this “riveting” film received wide praise from critics and viewers after its release in 2004.
The film sees Staunton portray the titular character, a housekeeper in 1950s London. In addition to her day job, Vera provides abortions for women with unwanted pregnancies, though the authorities soon catch wind of her illegal activities.
Boasting a stacked supporting cast of British talent including Eddie Marsan, Phil Davis and Adrian Scarborough, the drama is now streaming in the UK on Netflix after it was added to the service on Friday (17 October).
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Upon its release, Vera Drake received considerable critical acclaim as it won the prestigious Golden Lion (Best Film) award at the 61st Venice International Film Festival. It also garnered three Academy Award nominations, including Best Actress and Best Director.
Furthermore, it has an approval rating of 93% on Rotten Tomatoes from 160 reviews, with the site’s critical consensus reading: “With a piercingly powerful performance by Imelda Staunton, Vera Drake brings teeming humanity to the controversial subject of abortion.”
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“While the drama is emotionally harrowing, it’s also riveting, profoundly affecting and observed with a real generosity of spirit,” opined Variety (via Rotten Tomatoes), while the Chicago Sun-Times called the film’s performances “pitch-perfect” and “seemingly effortless”.
“Aside from the performances, which are uniformly excellent, the greatest strength of Mike Leigh’s drama is its non-judgmental stance on abortion,” noted BBC.com in its own positive review.
“The heroine of Mike Leigh’s wonderfully subtle and relentlessly harrowing new film is a cheerful, compactly built middle-aged woman who spends her waking hours in perpetual motion,” wrote Film Comment Magazine.
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Washington Post was also full of praise in its review as they called Staunton the “standout”, adding: “[It’s] a carefully calibrated parable that quietly sneaks into your heart and prods it sharply.”
The period drama isn’t the only film to be added to Netflix UK this week, with other new titles including the documentary The Perfect Neighbor, John Krasinski’s acclaimed horror A Quiet Place and iconic sci-fi Back to the Future.
Vera Drake is streaming now on Netflix.
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Reporter, Digital Spy George is a freelance writer who specialises in Movies and TV. After graduating with a degree in Film Studies and Journalism from De Montfort University, in which he analysed the early works of Richard Linklater for his dissertation, he wrote for several websites for GRV Media. Â His film tastes vary from blockbusters like Mission: Impossible and John Wick to international directors such as Paolo Sorrentino and Hirokazu Kore-eda, and has attended both the London and Berlin film festivals.
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