Rewriting Female Ageing in 2020s Cinema: Ageing, Care, and the Post-Pandemic Context
Rewriting Female Ageing in 2020s Cinema: Ageing, Care, and the Post-Pandemic Context

Summary/Abstract: Ageing has surged as a central theme in the cultural landscape of the 2020s, becoming prominent in narratives shaped by the COVID-19 pandemic, and creating new pathways for cinematic representation, particularly regarding female ageing. This paper examines how later life is framed for women in narrative cinema, focusing on three films released in the 2020s from the Global North: The Life Ahead (Edoardo Ponti, 2020), Good Luck to You, Leo Grande (Sophie Hyde, 2022), and The Miracle Club (Thaddeus O’Sullivan, 2023). Through a qualitative analysis of narrative structure, cinematography, and character development, this study explores how these films construct female ageing across social and cultural discourses that emphasise resilience, care, and social engagement. Complementing the qualitative approach, a quantitative section examines patterns of gendered screen time, highlighting representational trends that contribute to positive ageing narratives. Findings suggest that contemporary 2020s films attempt to resist traditional decline-centred frameworks by portraying middle-aged and older women as more complex and agentic, reframing ageing as a stage characterised by relational depth and continued participation in social and cultural life. While focusing on a limited film sample, the study acknowledges that broader diversity may require further research. This paper positions cinema of the 2020s, read within a post-pandemic context, as a site where age norms are both reflected and reimagined, demonstrating how positive portrayals of female ageing contribute to interdisciplinary discussions on ageing, media, and cultural production. By bridging European and Anglophone cinema, it offers insights into evolving representations of gendered ageing and the shifting cultural imaginaries of later life, addressing questions central to contemporary debates in film, society, and gerontology.

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