Lollipop

Molly (Posy Sterling) having ended her four-month jail sentence is keen to be reunited with her children Ava (Tegan-Mia Stanley Rhoads) and Leo (Luke Howitt).

The local social services, however, have other plans and while not outright rejecting her, say there are procedures she has to go through. Molly is living in a tent having been made homeless by her jailtime, which the social services deem to be ‘intentionally homeless.’ Until then they are to stay with their foster mother Sheila (Johanna Allitt).

By chance Molly bumps into her old college pal Amina (Idil Ahmed) who has a young daughter, with her own problems, and herself living in a hostel.

Then there’s Molly’s mother Sylvie (TerriAnn Cousins). They have fallen out and is the cause of most of Molly’s current problems regarding the children. Drink and mental health issues have taken a toll and she is now dealing with the death of her partner.

That is the character set up in Daisy-May Hudson’s feature debut which is based on her own experiences. What is most compelling is Molly dealing with a very bureaucratic system, one that appear faceless and unsympathetic.

At a panel hearing all the viewer hears are their voices and reasons for their actions. The camera is trained on Molly’s face her reactions and features telling all. It’s an intense and effective device that Hudson uses on number of occasions.

However Hudson’s documentary background is obvious when Molly has to claw her way through the system of social workers and regulations: she’s only eligible for a one-bedroom flat as she is classed as single despite them knowing that she has children. Here Hudson gives plenty of space to the actors to work something that runs through the film.

The frustrations and contradictions of the system are laid bare. Some are absurd yet at times a more sympathetic tone is adopted by the people Molly encounters and despite the tangle of regulations there is a nagging feeling they are trying to help.

Sterling is excellent as a mother who appears prepared to do anything for her children though aware that, under these circumstances, ‘anything’ could lead to bigger problems. Despite that her instincts take over and she takes a decision that has wide reaching repercussions.

To a certain extent we have been here before with Ken Loach and his social dramas, and the styles are similar. However Hudson’s focus in Lollipop in on how woman are affected by these issues, the system and society. It’s possibly a comment too that the social system here is represented by women.

Molly’s issues are the core of the film but Armina is fighting to get back her rental deposit money and there’s Sylvie, a seemingly selfish and self-centred individual, clearly suffering with mental health and drink issues as well as profound grief. Does that justify her earlier actions? Unlikely but like many aspects of this film could suggest that sometimes things aren’t clear cut.

Lollipop will be in UK cinemas on 13 June 2025