If there’s one overarching theme within all of Mike Leigh’s films, it is a sense of naturalism. Leigh is a patient filmmaker who lets scenes play out to their fullest extent and does not conform to traditional narrative structures that impede the authenticity of what he is capturing. This general style has allowed Leigh to approach radically different topics, such as a tortured anti-hero in “Naked,” the London Opera in “Topsy-Turvy,” or a legendary British painter in “Mr. Turner.” With his latest work “Hard Truths,” Leigh turns his sights on the epidemic of anger that has seemingly swept the world over the past decade.

The notion of a filmmaker of Leigh’s experience reflecting on the generational divide could have easily been misconstrued as an embittered, older artist lashing out at a world that he no longer recognizes. However, “Hard Truths” doesn’t condemn just one generation, cultural shift,...