Popular reviews

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  Review by RealAndrewLeo ★★★★½

  Apologies for logging this three times in four days haha. I’ll take a break now.

  Yet another movie I’ve fallen for that’s virtually unknown (103 reviews at the time of writing).

  Stacked cast for a microbudget film (e.g., Melanie Lynskey, John Gallagher Jr., “Taystee” from Orange Is the New Black, Tony Hale, etc.), but for me, Sophia Mitri Schloss is EVERYTHING. 

  I love her performance and her character, Sadie. 
  Usually I struggle with unlikeable characters, but Sadie is one of my all-time favorite female psychos. 

  Really, she’s just a deeply troubled girl that misses her dad—a solider serving overseas—and takes things WAY too far when she sees her mom moving on with someone new. 

  All in all, this is a sad,…

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  Review by MaryAnn 🌵 ★★★★

  I enjoy slice-of-life films, and this is a very good one. The story held my attention. Strong performances from all actors really anchored and grounded the film. The film feels more like you're watching a real situation and real people instead of simply telling a story. I also want to call to attention the work of the the production designer, Ben Blankenship, for making the setting feel very real. This film is currently available on Prime, and I definitely recommend it!

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  Review by Matt ★★½

  Nice performances especially from the young lead but god damn if this isn't just absolute misery porn.

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  Review by Rob Patrick ★★★★

  Sophia Mitri Schloss molts the quiet, aching pain seen in Lane 1974 and dives into a performance that is both venom and bubble wrap. Keep her rookie card.

  Directorially, Megan Griffiths takes some bonkers risks in this film. The third act is a marvel that eschews audience safety and I could discuss the no prisoners structure of this movie forever. 

  Megan. THIS IS NUTS.

  [Seen at Stateside at the Paramount in Austin, Texas]

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  Review by 📽️Movie Jail🎬 ★★★ 3

  Dreary trailer park life.

  It's the kind of movie that makes you feel sad for others.
  The lonely mother, the misfit daughter, the sad and troubled newcomer, the dejected nice guy, the bullied kid, the bored old man who's always on the porch.
  This is what I chose to watch on my lunch-break.
  Perks of working from home is the ability to watch movies during lunch time; it certainly beats having to hurry through local eateries in the city to grab lunch within a half-hour timeframe.
  The freedom is bliss.

  Everyone in this movie is pretty great btw.

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  Review by Sarah Genao (just2good) ★★★

  This is a criminally underseen drama from a great yet cirminally underseen indie drama director Megan Griffiths. A solid character study, and a great understated deconstruction of American patriotism and military lineage.

  I haven’t seen the lead, Sophia Mitri Schloss, in many other films but she really kills it in here. Danielle Brooks is also really good (I am so happy she got an Oscar nom last year!), same with John Gallagher Jr.

  The other performances are pretty good, except for one child actor, Keith L. Williams who I recognized from Good Boys (his performance fit there much better). There are some parts which come off unintentionally comedic because of his performance. However, the film is great at staying serious aside…

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  Review by 🦦 ★★★★★ 2

  it’s gonna be okay.

  it’s so human and so raw. this kind of empathy and realness brought to filmmaking about life in poverty in america is a type you rarely ever see - the last time i can remember it was the florida project and wow. this knocked the wind out of me.

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  Review by SnowboardJunkie ★★½

  When does a self absorbed, albeit lonely, little girl slowly loosing her mind and killing someone compare to brave people fighting a war? Even if you don't believe in the war it's like comparing raisins to wine - or at least grape juice.

  Melanie Lynskey is strong as usual, but the rest of the cast is serviceable at best. I guess not every independent film is hidden gem. And Mrs. Lynskey is wasted again on a micro budget that flounders.

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  Review by Mike D'Angelo ★★★½

  65/100

  Never saw Griffiths' human-trafficking drama Eden, but her latest seems to superimpose that film's (presumably) disturbing ruthlessness onto the goofy-hangout vibe of her terrific, under-appreciated Lucky Them. Here, though, it's the title character herself who's dangerous, albeit in a such a low-key, credible way that the numerous warning signs are easy to rationalize, if not completely ignore. Given the intended destination, most filmmakers would have constructed a tightly focused character study, as the title indeed suggests; Griffiths instead trusts fiercely talented newcomer Sophia Mitri Schloss to nail key moments (which she does), devoting nearly equal attention to everyone around her—particularly Sadie's loving but easily manipulated mom, played with heartbreaking emotional transparency by Melanie Lynskey. (Lynskey makes a five-course meal…

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  Review by renhargo ★★★★★

  I love indie dramas like this one, set in small towns, telling everyday stories that we can all relate to. Great performances all around, especially from all the child actors. Felt very real and authentic. Good stuff. 👍

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  Review by smallclone ★★★

  I'm not sure why this movie has received so much hate among critics and viewers. It's not groundbreaking, but it's a completely acceptable effort from Megan Griffiths, who also directed 'Eden', which is worth a look.

  John Gallagher Jnr is probably the standout, but Melanie Lynskey also puts in a solid performance as the struggling mother. It's a film that is rough around the edges, has plausibility issues but is no way worthy of some of the ratings it's received.

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  Review by tasha ★★★★

  john gallagher jr. if u read this im free on thursday n would like to hang out. please respond to this n then hang out with me on thursday when I'm free