A Fantastic Woman

"In this stirring portrait of grief and resilience, Daniela Vega’s poignant interiority saves a film too caught up in its exterior. Sebastián Lelio’s A Fantastic Woman features Vega as waitress and singer Marina Vidal, a trans woman left grieving after the death of her older boyfriend, Orlando (Francisco Reyes). When Orlando’s family find out about Marina, they forbid her from attending his funeral, compounding the frustration and heartache she is already so tenderly enduring."

"Chilean director Sebastián Lelio and star Daniela Vega give the growing bracket of transgender drama a new, luminous touchstone work."

"The title of Sebastián Lelio's new film might seem a bit on the nose. It's a fantastic movie. Daniela Vega, the star, is fantastic in it. Quote me in the ads, with exclamation points if you must. My work here is done."

"It may be a timely film, but it is its timelessness, as well as its depths of compassion, that qualify it as a great one."

"It's a battle to maintain grace under pressure no matter the indignities that come with it."

"Vega smoulders, seethes, and occasionally implodes. It's a piece of work of astonishing, internalised power."

"Leilo displays a knack for getting under the skin of female characters who, for no fault of their own, find themselves somewhat marginalised by society."

"The most plausible element, the foundation on which the movie rests and finally soars, is Vega's magnetic and meticulously controlled performance."

"While the storytelling grows frustratingly elliptical, Lelio so desperate to constrain the drama that he resorts to removing helpful pieces of it, the scenes that remain are succinct and evocative."

"Ravishing."

"A truly remarkable and unfiltered glimpse into a world of experiences that many of us know nothing about."