The story frames on 7-year-old Maisie, caught in a custody battle between her mother – a rock and roll icon – and her father. What Maisie Knew is an evocative portrayal of the chaos of adult life seen entirely from a child’s point of view.
The take
From the producers of The Kids Are Alright comes another excellent family drama starring Juliane Moore. She plays a hot-headed rock singer who battles her divorced husband, a narcissistic art dealer, expertly played by the unlikely Steeve Coogan, for custody of her daughter Maisie. When one of them marries the girl's nanny, the other rushes into marriage as well. Based on Henry James' titular novel from 1897, it tells the story of a quiet, sensitive young girl coping with being used as a pawn by egotistical parents who spite each other. It is sometimes hard to watch the girl get caught up in all this but the young actress playing Maisie, Onata Aprile, plays the part brilliantly. The screenplay adaption of the ahead-of-its-time material of the book by Nancy Doyne and Carroll Cartwright also hits every note with passion. A harrowing but powerful film.
Comments
Add a comment
What did you think? Who should watch it?
UP NEXT
UP NEXT
UP NEXT
More like this in
Lingui: The Sacred Bonds (2021)
Solidarity is salvation in this moving portrait of female resilience
8.3
The Guilty (2018)
A minimalist, razor-sharp thriller that will have you gasping for air.
9.0
Love Is in the Air (2023)
It’s even more cliched and implausible than most standard-issue romantic comedies, but this Aussie film is not without its charms
6.0
Forgotten Love (2023)
The stunning third take of the classic Polish pre-war melodrama
7.7
Bheed (2023)
An intense Indian social drama depicting inequity in a COVID-19 checkpoint
7.7
The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020)
A star-studded and riveting legal drama with a blockbuster feel.
9.1
System Crasher (2019)
A tale of trauma and one of the most talked about movies on Netflix in 2020.
9.0
Skate Kitchen (2018)
An all-girl skate crew take us for a dreamy verité ride-along through their coming of age
8.1
Afire (2023)
An enigmatic German drama that constantly simmers with all kinds of tension
7.2
Rohan at the Louvre (2023)
A riveting supernatural mystery contemplating Japanese art in relation to the world