Frank Adler (Chris Evans) wants his niece Mary (McKenna Grace) to live a normal life. The only problem is Mary is a child genius, and when she struggles to accept the authority of school, they are both draw into a bitter custody battle with Mary’s maternal grandmother, Evelyn (Lindsay Duncan), over how the child should be raised.
Gifted is a hard-to-fault, well shot, well paced film about the pressures of academia, and the conflict between nurturing Mary’s potential, and living a more ‘authentic’, lower class life.
McKenna Grace wins hearts with her sassy and outspoken portrayal of Mary. However, the film is more tear-jerking and heartfelt than first expected. Occasionally, snippets of humour, whether due to the way it was spoken by the actors or simply not understanding the reference, few straight over my head. However, there are more than enough laughs from Grace’s and Octavia Spencer’s performances, and from Fred, the one-eyed cat.
Overall, an enjoyable balance of humour and sadness that will strike a chord with most audiences. I rate this film 8/10.
Gifted is in cinemas now.
