In Moving, we see a married couple’s relationship unravel through the eyes of 12-year-old Ren (Tomoko Tabata, an unbelievable natural). Ren is smart and mature; she performs domestic chores and doesn’t hesitate to tell her parents off. But she’s also just a child, so when she learns about her parents’ plan to divorce, she breaks down, despite herself. She concocts adorable Parent Trap-like plans and gives in to her childish and dangerous urges. She also runs away a lot, hence the title. She’s in the midst of a painful coming-of-age—of realizing for the first time that your parents aren’t heroes, your friends won’t always have your back, and your summer vacations won’t always be pretty. The film captures that anguish, just as much as it revels in the playfulness that seems innate in Ren. The result is a delightful, moving film that serves to remind us just how rich the inner world of a child is, and how she deserves to be treated just the same as any human being, that is, with respect and a whole lot of empathy.
Physically separated from her father and at odds with her distraught mother, a girl must negotiate her own passage to maturity.
Writer-director Eva Victor plays Agnes, a young woman whose future seems hazy after something tragic happens.
For a first-time director, Victor displays a masterful handling of her craft. More, please!
In a sea of #MeToo films, this stands out for its powerful silence.
