Palm Trees and Power Lines

Palm trees and Power Lines is the story of a bored girl who is emerging on adolescence. She meets a much older man who seems to understand her like she wishes others did.

So per my IMDb page I have seen 439 horror movies in my life... plus obviously many others. This film is without a doubt one of the most cringy and disturbing I have ever seen. This is not for the feint of heart. It also may not go in the direction you immediately assume.

The screen play is spot on , crafting a realistic story and character motivations. The acting and casting here is also very strong with Lily McInerny playing a girl 5 years younger than she is in real life to protection. You feel her frustrations with her circumstances and lack of belonging. Johnathon Tucker also plays his character very well in a role that demands a certain level of performance.

The only negatives I can even conjure up here is the entire film is shot on hand help and sometimes it becomes jarring to watch. Mundane conversations can be unappealing to look at and it isn't shot the best.

This movie absolutely nails what it was going for and should be seen by the right group of people but it isn't for everyone just the same. If you can take being shocked, offended and challenged by a take on a coming of age story - this is a great film.

This is a very stunning debut film. The authenticity - the atmosphere, the acting - is stellar. The small-town teenage malaise is palpable. Lily McInerny is amazing, her portrayal of a doe-eyed adolescent longing for love but completely naive to life is excellent. Jonathan Tucker is completely believable as a charismatic "bad boy with heart."

My only gripe is that the story turns a bit fast and kind of strains credulity. Grooming takes time. And the situation would've been much more believable with drugs, which so often help people dissociate and bury trauma. But overall, an excellent take on a tough story.

At seventeen you have a mother who's distracted, a boyfriend to whom you're clearly not attracted, it's the summer time is free, and so it's with some joy and glee, that you let an older man, have you extracted; as he takes you out and you start to get close, he treats you well, and doesn't hide in the shadows, although alarm bells should be ringing, a waitress knows what he is bringing, there's lots of cons and only one important pros; but you let him take advantage and engage, you're streetwise, have a quite mature gauge (or so you believe), he wants to introduce a friend, has something you can help distend, you could profit, and make him a living wage.

Great performance from Lily McInerny.

Very solid first feature film from director Jamie Dack.

Really nice little indie coming of age film.

Peaceful and realistic slice of life kinda story.

I really liked it.

It was really nicely crafted.

I could understand motivations of every character.

There were some really nice family and frienship drama that i did relate in some levels.

But i can also see that this film will be very divisive.

There has been lot of conversations about age gap relationships in films lately.

But in this film that relationship is clearly supposed to be super uncomfortable and inappropriate.

And i mean super uncomfortable at so many momens.

Red flags were seen everywhere.

But i can really see that these kinda relationships are happening in real life.

Really well made film.

Nice looking.

Really naturalistic.

Mostly no soundtrack at all.

Nice performances.

I can see that Lily McInerney has bright future ahead.

She was really good in this.

Nice supporting performances too.

If this gets some really good studio to distribute it, i can really see it finding own audience.

I really hope so.

Or then it wil remain as little Sundance hidden gem.

I enjoyed my time watching this.

In telling a cautionary tale, a film must be on point if its message is to be effectively conveyed. Regrettably, such is not the case in this story of a silver-tongued, 34-year-old sexual predator (Jonathan Tucker) in his efforts to win the affections of a disconnected adolescent from a fragmented household (Lily McInerny) and manipulate her into a life of degrading, subservient behavior. It's a troubling tale, to be sure, one that has an important point to make. However, the execution leaves much to be desired. The film's glacial pacing (especially in the first half) becomes tedious quickly, particularly with the inclusion of considerable needless incidental footage depicting mundane everyday activities, events that are undoubtedly intended to reflect the teen's monotonous worldview but that grow eminently tiresome in short order. This is compounded by uneven character development, most notably that of the vulnerable protagonist, whose persona wavers wildly from incisively streetwise to exceedingly naïve and plainly outspoken to severely inhibited, undermining the believability of who she's really supposed to be and her reactions to the circumstances she faces. That's perhaps nowhere more apparent than in the conclusion, which, in my view, also stretches credibility somewhat (though I know there are those who would definitely beg to differ with me on that point). To its credit, the performances are all quite good, having earned two of the picture's four Independent Spirit Award nominations for the portrayals turned in by Tucker and McInerny. Still, this overlong offering suffers from both the aforementioned issues, as well as some questionable camera work and a need for tighter editing. Writer-director Jamie Dack's debut feature may have its origins in good intentions, but its followthrough frequently - and often widely - misses the mark.