Cast: Helen Mirren, Timothy Spall, Johnny Flynn, Kate Winslet, Andrea Riseborough, Toni Collette, Stephen Merchant, Fisayo Akinade
Director: Kate Winslet
Rating: ★★★
Kate Winslet steps behind the camera for the first time goodbye juneIt’s a holiday-set family drama that comes with a reputation. Written by his son Joe Anders, the film follows a tale of estranged relatives, unresolved wounds, and a ticking clock as a terminal illness unfolds.
The story focuses on June (Helen Mirren), a fast-talking but affectionate matriarch who is diagnosed with terminal cancer just weeks before Christmas. Choosing to spend her final days in a private hospital room, June becomes the stable point around which her broken family moves inward. Her children gather reluctantly, carrying old resentments, quiet disappointments, and a life gone too far from each other. As the days pass, June gently – and sometimes strategically – nudges them toward reconciliation, determined to leave behind something resembling emotional closure before time runs out.
Good
Kate’s greatest asset as a director is her flair for performance, and it shows here. The ensemble is uniformly strong, with Kate herself giving a particularly controlled turn as Julia, the eldest daughter burdened by responsibility and habitually thankless labour. Andrea Riseborough brings a raw, fiery edge to Molly, whose financial stress and emotional instability fuel some of the film’s most charged scenes. Their confrontation, carried out in the darkness of a hospital corridor, bursts with the rage of survival.
Helen anchors the film with quiet authority, offering moments of devastating stillness that cut through the surrounding sentimentality. Johnny Flynn’s isolated younger brother adds a softer, more interior note, while Fisayo Akinade’s gently attentive nurse provides quiet guidance without overwhelming the frame. Cate’s direction is unobtrusive and fluid, allowing the heavy work to be done with close-ups and silent scenes.
bad
Despite all its sincerity, the film struggles to feel entirely genuine. Characters often register as types rather than people, drawn broadly and pushed toward revelation by necessity rather than discovery. Many subplots seem engineered to resolve neatly before the credits roll, and the script’s fondness for symbolic gestures – especially in its Christmas pageantry – takes the film into saccharine territory. Toni Collette’s free-spirited sister and Timothy Spall’s emotionally unavailable father draw with a bluntness that blunts nuance elsewhere. Even death feels soft, tamed, palatable.
Decision
There is nothing inherently wrong with shedding tears, and goodbye june Earns many of its emotional beats through craft and ability alone. Yet its carefully orchestrated sadness, refined warmth and predictable reconciliations keep it at arm’s length. Kate’s debut shows confidence and compassion, but also an unwillingness to let discomfort linger. It’s a beautiful, heartfelt farewell – one that gets to the truth, but rests on reassurance.