It’s the 1950’s, Great Britain is not so great and stands knee deep amid war bills and rationing. Yet through it all, Vera Drake (Imelda Staunton) smiles as she goes about her business; char-lady, mother of two and clandestine practitioner of illegal abortions. Beloved by family and those for whom she cares; Vera is a woman whose heart of gold is her undoing in Mike Leigh’s latest assault on middle-class guilt. Part of a network of self-reliance, Vera works outside the law to help women in trouble. Abortion is virtually illegal and beyond reach of the working-classes, but as she doesn’t accept payment her conscience is, naively, clear. Until the day police knock on her door, Vera sleeps very well indeed. This is classic Leigh, an essential masterwork with an outstanding Staunton at its centre. Infusing so many of the elements that define his work, Leigh’s meticulous approach creates a wholly believable world in which to ponder the nonsensical inconsistency of law and attitude. Staunton is at her best as a woman shattered by the realisation that not everyone views life as she does. The defining moment occurs after police invade her home: the sublime response is heartbreaking. Vera Drake is not an easy film to watch as it slides relentlessly from the hopeful tone of exploited people into one family’s misery and despair. It is far from being an ‘entertainment’, yet Vera Drake is a magnificent work from one of the world’s most inspired filmmakers that should not be missed. // COLIN FRASER