Little Sister

With its blend of terrifyingly intense family bonds and the howling furies of the world outside, this is a great American political film.

Flirting with sitcommy high jinks, Clark instead gives us a bittersweet cocktail of soul-weary defeat and unassuming vigor.

It's a quiet and gentle film, emotional but not manipulatively sentimental, sad but not nihilistic, Marilyn Manson epigram and Goth-font chapter markers notwithstanding.

A slight, sweetly cynical indie dramedy about family and belonging and the ways we cope with life’s disappointments.

The punk and metal music-infused soundtrack belies the film’s largely gentle approach to a series of small, evocative and well-played moments that combine to slowly heal the Lunsfords and prove that you can go home again.

Timlin and Paulson create a believable rapport as the central siblings, though it’s Sheedy’s chemistry with the camera (and her character) that creates the film’s most dramatically satisfying moments.

The film's attempt at political insight and portrayal of social malaise are meant to give it the illusion of depth.