It's hard to write about a film in which one of the actors is a relative of yours. Would I have liked this one as much otherwise? I did notice problems with the sound, which I found very uneven, as well as with line delivery, at times so rushed that it's hard to understand what is being said, in spite of the subtitles - a challenge in themselves, since following along with them is difficult also. I wish the director could remake the whole thing exactly as is, scene for scene, except instruct the actors to slow down on some of their lines. (And get a better sound person.)
However, on the whole, I thought the simple storyline worked well, each small revelation coming at just the right time, each interaction between the characters feeling real. As viewers, we are aware that Eliza harbours the same anguish Damian does. She, too, worries what will happen to them if their mother doesn't recover, especially in light of their father's seemingly frequent absences. She certainly would have preferred that her father come to them inToronto, where she and Damian have been living with their mom, instead of having to act the grown-up by taking the train to Montreal with her younger brother, only to arrive at an empty house - empty even of food. As the "responsible" one, Eliza can't let her brother see her own distress, but she is still, at least for one brief, explosive moment, enough of a teenager to let her father have a piece of her mind, then run crying from the restaurant.
Yet, implicit in her earlier telephone conversation with her friend, who is out partying and having fun, is Eliza's quiet realization that she doesn't really have a choice. If this means she has to be an adult, then that is what she'll have to be from now on. To me, that was the most telling, moving scene.
However, on the whole, I thought the simple storyline worked well, each small revelation coming at just the right time, each interaction between the characters feeling real. As viewers, we are aware that Eliza harbours the same anguish Damian does. She, too, worries what will happen to them if their mother doesn't recover, especially in light of their father's seemingly frequent absences. She certainly would have preferred that her father come to them inToronto, where she and Damian have been living with their mom, instead of having to act the grown-up by taking the train to Montreal with her younger brother, only to arrive at an empty house - empty even of food. As the "responsible" one, Eliza can't let her brother see her own distress, but she is still, at least for one brief, explosive moment, enough of a teenager to let her father have a piece of her mind, then run crying from the restaurant.
Yet, implicit in her earlier telephone conversation with her friend, who is out partying and having fun, is Eliza's quiet realization that she doesn't really have a choice. If this means she has to be an adult, then that is what she'll have to be from now on. To me, that was the most telling, moving scene.