A Bump Along the Way (Shelly Love, 2019): UK

Reviewed by Diego Moreno. Viewed at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2020.

A Bump Along The Way is a solid film that has a well-crafted story about middle age pregnancy while also focusing on the developing relationship of mother and daughter throughout the film. I recommend this movie to those who enjoy dramedies, films that make you both laugh and pull on your heartstrings.

The film is directed by Shelley Love and stars Bronagh Gallagher and Lola Petticrew as the lead central characters. I watched this movie at its U.S. premiere at Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2020. In A Bump Along The Way, a middle-aged mother unintentionally gets pregnant during a one-night stand. The father of the baby abandons her while the mother’s daughter disapproves of the situation that she has gotten into, which causes her to get bullied at school.

The movie does a great job of exploring what both the mother and daughter go through during the entire pregnancy journey in just an hour and 35 minutes. It’s a bumpy ride, hence the title of the movie “A Bump Along The Way”. There are moments of hardships, hope, and laughter. There is dialogue that will make you chuckle, and scenes that will have you feel for the lead characters due to the situations they’re in. While everyone’s acting in this film is strong and believable, Bronagh Gallagher is the star of the show. You may recognize her from the 1994 hit Pulp Fiction, in which she has a small role as the character Trudi. Her scenes are personally my favorite in the film and believe her acting is the most powerful in the movie.

Overall, A Bump Along The Way is a well-directed, well-written film that tells the stories of two people in an emotional journey mixing both drama and comedy in its story without getting in the way of the movie’s tone.  Like I previously mentioned at the beginning of the review, I do recommend this movie, especially to those who are fans of dramedies, or at least enjoy them. It’s worth your time because it’s a brilliant showcase of great acting, particularly from Bronagh Gallagher. It’s also worth your time because of how well it depicts a mother/daughter relationship and its development through the whole movie. It’s broken at first, but they find ways to bond in some funny and touching intimate conversations between them. I had a pleasant time with A Bump Along The Way and was a grand way to start the excellent experience that was Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2020.