GLORIA

"Sebastián Lelio's enormously satisfying spell inside the head and heart of a middle-aged woman never puts a foot wrong." - Hollywood Reporter

Santiago divorcée and 58-year-old mother of grown children Gloria decides she will not slide into old age quietly. Hitting the senior singles scene is initially a series of debacles until she meets the sweet but somewhat hapless Rodolfo.

Written with deep empathy and humour, this uplifting, endlessly rewarding film avoids all the clichés as it astutely propels the title character through a midlife crisis of sorts. Immensely relatable, Gloria is essentially happy, if a little lonely; she enjoys hanging out with her children, dancing and her occasional (frank but unjudgmentally filmed) sexual liaisons - and, thanks to Paulina García's Berlinale Silver Bear-winning performance, she is one of the most watchable, impeccably fleshed-out characters in recent times. Only a stone-cold heart could not fall in love with her.

"Paulina García has you on her side from the first frame." - Telegraph