About connection and new beginnings, Mike Mills’ autobiographical film Beginners is one of those charmers that’ll have you laughing one minute and tearing up the next. The film stars Ewan McGregor as Oliver, a graphic designer whose 75-year-old father, played by Christopher Plummer, decides to come out of the closet after the passing of his wife (Oliver’s mother). Told through a series of flashbacks and flash-forwards peppered with playful interludes, Oliver re-evaluates what he’s come to know about relationships. Filmmaker Mills, also a graphic designer and music video director with a distinct visual style, made his first splash on the indie scene with Thumbsucker. His sophomore effort, Beginners, is similarly refreshing, like a sweet and tangy glass of lemonade on a sweltering day.

Beginners is a Focus Features release.

(Originally appeared on Flavorpill.com in June 2011.)