Brave, challenging, heartbreaking.
Okay, I just want to say this movie stressed me out. A lot.
It's about a 47-year-old man whose life has come apart and is feeling lost. He meets an 11-year-old girl who is neglected by her family and friends and is feeling lonely. Somehow, this movie asks us to trust these two characters together, even though the motivations are quite unclear -- the man is either unbalanced or is gently manipulating the girl; meanwhile, the girl trusts him implicitly (with some trepidation) and looks up to him as a friend, a father figure, or maybe more. There are more than a handful of cringe-y moments, and other times where we worry about how the outside world may view these characters. By the end of the film, I felt crushed for both of them and sad beyond words. The movie is brave, challenging and heartbreaking, with terrific performances (especially by the girl, played by Oona Laurence), which almost plays as a spiritual successor to Room (if all the roles were reversed). I think it's the first great film of 2016.