Monica (15): The CineSkinny Film Club sponsored by MUBI

June is Pride month, and to celebrate, the CineSkinny Film Club has teamed up with the brilliant streaming service MUBI for a screenings of the fantastic queer drama Monica.

This new film from talented Italian director Andrea Pallaoro centres on a transgender woman – the eponymous Monica – who’s been living in LA for over a decade after being thrown out of her Midwestern home by her transphobic mother, Eugenia. When Monica hears news that Eugenia is dying from a brain tumour, she makes a reluctant return home to say goodbye, only to find that her mother doesn’t recognise her, assuming instead that she’s her new caregiver.

From this setup emerges an unsentimental study of personal healing through human connection. Patricia Clarkson gives a deeply moving performance as Eugenia while transgender actress Trace Lysette is a revelation as Monica. The film is also distinguished by Pallaoro’s inventive shooting style, which uses a boxy 4:3 ratio and expressionistic close-ups to immerse us in Monica’s world.

Join us to see this moving new slice of queer cinema on the big screen.