So B. It

This is an enjoyable movie. An easy watch. It is not profound or life changing and you'll likely forget about in a couple of months, but if you're looking to pass some time on a Sunday afternoon, it'll do.

An American family drama; A story about a young girl who travels across America to understand more about her mother's past. This is a film to be regarded for excellent individual performances and much less for the plot, which is not very plausible, but there is flair and style in the way it is told. The actress playing the precocious child captures the conflict within her, one who feels responsible for her autistic mother more than she might be emotionally equipped to process and handle. But it is the portrayal of Mama, the mother, where the issue lies. Lacking agency, she does not, as a character, serve the plot, confining her to the fringes. The result feels false and convenient for the story. It is a family film with a good heart nonetheless and avoids being mawkish or cloying, but the film ends conveniently with a neat line under the issues the young girl would face.

This film has good intentions, but when all is said and done, it is little more than a sentimental tear-jerker. Heidi lives in an apartment with her mentally disabled mother and her next-door neighbor Bernadette. The apartment is actually Bernadette's, with her mother's apartment easily accessed through a removed closet panel.

Odd? Quite. Especially since Bernadette has no idea who pays for Heidi's mother's apartment. She met her right after she gave birth to Heidi, and no one ever came over to ask if she had seen Heidi's mother. Still with me here? Yes, Bernadette just decides to care for Heidi and her mother, instead of calling in social services or anyone else.

Apparently, she pays for all their food and clothes and other stuff, but sends 12-year-old Heidi, dressed to look like an adult, off to a slot machine place where she always wins lots of quarters. No joke. Bernadette also homeschools Heidi, so there was never a need for a birth certificate or any other form of identification. She obviously doesn't want Heidi to be taken away from her by anyone.

Bernadette has agoraphobia, you see, and really emotionally needs Heidi and her mother. Problem is Heidi is at an age where she wants to know who her father is, why her mother has no relatives, and doesn't even have a real name. (Bernadette calls her "Precious".) So, after looking at photos in her mother's apartment for the very first time in 12 years, off Heidi runs away to the east coast to find answers.

It's a long bus trip from Reno, Nevada, but Heidi gets to where she is going, and soon finds answers to all her questions. It's really not much of a story and not particularly believable, both Heidi's family story and the movie's story. Yet, from reading reviews, it appears to be a story some viewers found very touching. If you are the type of viewer who has a box of tissues nearby, do give the film a try.

This was really moving and an excellent movie. The characters are very believable and suited themselves well. The story of the girl and her search for her family history is truly touching, and the girl especially is, in my opinion, a good example of excellent acting and character. Overall, I think I would recommend this movie to anyone.

My wife and I watched this movie in March 2018 at home on DVD from our public library, I repeated the viewing in January 2020. Yes, it is a real gem of a movie.

We find out the girl is 12, she lives in Reno with her mother and an agoraphobic woman in the adjacent apartment. How? Well when the girl was only 7 days old and the mother clearly distraught, the woman next door punched out a couple of panels that enabled them to have a door between the two living spaces. The mother, whose named seemed to be So B. It, was severely disabled, only spoke a few words, and certain events would make her get out of control. Clearly not able to be an adequate mother. How did all this come about? That in fact is the heart of the movie.

Heidi is the 12-yr-old girl, played by Talitha Bateman. She is very bright and capable and as she has become aware of her unusual situation in life started to ask questions about where she came from. Then the break comes when they find a old canister of exposed but undeveloped 35mm color film. The photos lead her to a small community in upstate New York and a home for disabled adults.

All the actors are good but the impact of movie depends on young Talitha Bateman and she carries it very well. Unusually well. This is a good movie of a good, heartwarming story.