"Gifted": review

Chris Evans and Mckenna Grace star in 2017's "Gifted," directed by Marc Webb ("The Amazing Spider-Man") and co-starring Octavia Spencer, Jenny Slate, and Lindsay Duncan. The story is about an intellectually gifted little girl named Mary Adler (Grace) who, after her equally gifted mother commits suicide, is cared for by her uncle Frank (Evans). Frank is convinced that Mary, despite being gifted, should lead something like a normal life. He is supported in his view by compassionate neighbor Roberta (Spencer). But larger forces are at work: Mary's British grandmother Evelyn (Duncan) is determined to obtain custody of Mary in order to send the girl to advanced schools where her gifts can be cultivated. Much of the movie is a tug of war between Frank and Evelyn as they each vie to determine Mary's future.

The movie starts with Frank being at least somewhat aware of Mary's talents. Frank used to be a college professor of philosophy, but he now repairs boats in Florida as a freelancer, living modestly but without health insurance. He whisked Mary away right after his sister committed suicide, and while Frank has been homeschooling Mary, he now thinks it's important for her to learn social skills and to interact with kids her own age. To that end, Frank has Mary dress properly for her first day at public school. Mary's teacher, Bonnie Stevenson (Slate), quickly notices Mary's mathematical ability (and the rudeness that accompanies Einstein-level intelligence), and she talks with Frank, who remains firm on the idea that Mary ought to be in public school. Frank's mother Evelyn eventually makes an appearance, and thus do we get the tug of war. So the movie presents us with two major-but-interconnected sources of drama: the battle between Frank and Evelyn to determine Mary's future, and the question of whether a girl with a genius-level intellect can or should live as normal a life as possible, even if that means not sending her to the schools that could best cultivate her mind.

The movie stands or falls on the performance of little Mckenna Grace (she does not capitalize the "k" in her first name), a precocious child actress who played young Tonya Harding in "I, Tonya" (reviewed here). There's always a risk when it comes to child actors, who can end up being annoying when they're supposed to be cute. Some child actors are naturals: young Ricky Schroeder in "The Champ," Henry Thomas and Drew Barrymore in "E.T.," Edward Furlong in "Terminator 2," Ke Huy Quan in "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom," and Jena Malone in "Contact" all come immediately to mind. I always thought Macaulay Culkin was a horrible child actor; quite a few kids are utter duds on screen. Happily, Mckenna Grace is not one of them, and she gives a naturalistic performance that will almost convince you that the actress is as intellectually gifted as the character she's playing. Grace makes Mary seem plausible: Mary is funny, annoying (in the way kids can be annoying), and touching. She's also quite lovable, and I ended up thinking Grace had been well cast.

The adult actors all do yeoman's work as well. Chris Evans's Frank is warm but a bit stoic; Octavia Spencer, as Roberta, brings a soulful compassion to her role: Roberta dotes on Mary and only ever wants to see her happy. Jenny Slate's Bonnie is no dumb bunny, and she smoothly insinuates herself into the life of Frank, Mary, and Roberta. Lindsay Duncan is formidable as Frank's cold mother Evelyn, herself a mathematical prodigy who is laser-focused on little Mary's future. Part of Evelyn's motivation may be about the question of legacy: Mary's mother Diane was, before she killed herself, trying to solve one of the so-called Millennium Prize Problems in math: in her case, she had focused her life on the Navier-Stokes Problem, which has to do with fluid dynamics. The movie's conclusion involves a revelation about Diane and her work that affects Evelyn's desire to guide little Mary's future.

Overall, "Gifted" isn't a revolutionary film; stories about geniuses are a dime a dozen (and my favorite remains "Good Will Hunting"), as are stories about the risk of wasted potential, and stories about receiving a high calling but wanting to live a normal life (cf. "The Last Temptation of Christ," where the final temptation is domesticity, a shirking of the savior role). But "Gifted" benefits from a solid cast of actors and actresses who give the story of little Mary life and feeling. You may discover there are some moments that bring a tear to the eye or a tightness to the throat. This is a good film, and I think it conveys a good message about parenting. Frank is Mary's uncle, not her father, but Frank and Roberta, like biological parents, both care deeply about Mary's future, and more importantly, about her happiness. That's not a bad thing to take away from this charming story.