''Juniper'' is a 2021 New Zealand

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

directed by

Matthew J. Saville __NOTOC__ Matthew J. Saville is an actor, writer and film director from New Zealand. Early life and education Saville was born in Durban, South Africa. His mother is a New Zealander and his father South African, and the family moved to New ...

, starring

Charlotte Rampling Tessa Charlotte Rampling (born 5 February 1946) is an English actress, known for her work in European arthouse films in English, French, and Italian. An icon of the Swinging Sixties, she began her career as a model. She was cast in the role ...

Plot

Set in rural New Zealand in the 1990s, the film tells the story of the developing relationship of the adolescent Sam and his acerbic and alcoholic grandmother with an unconventional past, whom he has not met before.

Cast

as Ruth * George Ferrier as Sam *

Marton Csokas Marton Paul Csokas (, hu, Csókás Márton Pál; born 30 June 1966) is a Hungarian-New Zealand actor of film, stage, and television. A graduate of the Toi Whakaari drama school, he has worked extensively in Australia and Hollywood, along with ...

as Robert, Sam's father * Edith Poor as Sarah, Ruth's nurse

Production

''Juniper'' is written and directed by Matthew J. Saville, in his directorial debut feature film. It was produced by Desray Armstrong and Angela Littlejohn. The name derives from

juniper berries A juniper berry is the female seed cone produced by the various species of junipers. It is not a true berry, but a cone with unusually fleshy and merged scales, which gives it a berry-like appearance. The cones from a handful of species, especial ...

, a key ingredient in

gin Gin () is a distilled alcoholic drink that derives its flavour from juniper berries (''Juniperus communis''). Gin originated as a medicinal liquor made by monks and alchemists across Europe, particularly in southern Italy, Flanders and the Ne ...

, to which Ruth is addicted and drinks by the jugful every day.

Release

''Juniper'' screened in many film festivals: ;2021 * Bari International Film Festival (International Panorama Competition, Best Actress in a Leading Role, Charlotte Rampling) * Atlantic International Film Festival – Special Presentation, *

Cinéfest Sudbury International Film Festival Cinéfest Sudbury International Film Festival, also known as Cinéfest and Cinéfest Sudbury is an annual film festival in Greater Sudbury, Ontario, Canada,"Cinefest provides cultural landmark". ''Sudbury Star'', September 16, 1999. held over nine ...

* Edmonton International Film Festival *

Brisbane International Film Festival The Brisbane International Film Festival (BIFF) is an annual film festival held in Brisbane, Australia. Organised by the Screen Culture unit at Screen Queensland, the festival has taken place since 1992, with the program including features, doc ...

Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival, or PÖFF ( et, Pimedate Ööde Filmifestival), is an annual film festival held since 1997 in Tallinn, the capital city of Estonia. PÖFF is the only festival in Northern Europe or the Baltic region with a FIA ...

;2022 *

Palm Springs International Film Festival Palm Springs International Film Festival (sometimes stylized shortly as PSIFF) is a film festival held in Palm Springs, California. Originally promoted by Mayor Sonny Bono and then sponsored by Nortel,here for Table of Contents it started in 1989 ...

Santa Barbara International Film Festival The Santa Barbara International Film Festival (SBIFF) is an eleven-day film festival held in Santa Barbara, California since 1986. The festival boasts screenings of over 200 feature films and shorts from different countries and regions. SBIFF al ...

* Edinburgh International Film Festival It was released in cinemas in New Zealand on 28 October 2021, and in Australia in August 2022, distributed by

Transmission Films Transmission Films is an Australian and New Zealand film distribution company based in Sydney, Australia and Auckland, New Zealand founded in 2008 by Richard Payten and Andrew Mackie. History Transmission Films was founded in 2008 by Richard Pa ...

Reception

The film received generally positive reviews. Review aggregator

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

reports that 92% of 50 critics have given the film a positive review, with an average rating of 7.1 out of 10. The website's critical consensus reads, "''Juniper's'' story offers few surprises -- and it doesn't need any, with Charlotte Rampling holding the viewer rapt from start to finish". ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'' praised its writing in the dialogue between Sam and Ruth. ''

Australian Financial Review ''The Australian Financial Review'' (abbreviated to the ''AFR'') is an Australian business-focused, compact daily newspaper covering the current business and economic affairs of Australia and the world. The newspaper is based in Sydney, New Sou ...

'' wrote "New Zealand films are known for their expansive feeling for landscape, and ''Juniper'' is no exception", and "Rampling is predictably good as the tough, intelligent, old woman, but Ferrier, on debut is excellent in the role of a teenage boy struggling towards a hard-won maturity". The

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

's Jason Di Rosso said that Rampling's role was slightly reminiscent of her role in ''

Swimming Pool A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, paddling pool, or simply pool, is a structure designed to hold water to enable Human swimming, swimming or other leisure activities. Pools can be built into the ground (in-ground pools) or built ...

'' (2003) and "Saville succeeds in creating an emotional authenticity to Ruth and Sam's difficult relationship...". '' FilmInk'' wrote "...the real star here is Rampling. She is subtly sensational, conveying complex emotions with a single glance.", and praised Saville's direction, done "with great compassion and insight".

References

External links

* * {{IMDb title, 11599576
Official trailer
on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

2021 films 2020s English-language films 2020s New Zealand films New Zealand black comedy films New Zealand drama films 2021 directorial debut films