The Quiet Girl (2022)

March 21, 2023 9:14 AM

A quiet, neglected girl is sent away from her dysfunctional family to live with relatives for the summer. She blossoms in their care, but in this house where there are meant to be no secrets, she discovers one.

Currently in theaters and hasn’t gone to streaming yet. It’s such a quiet little film, I’m not sure how much I would have caught on a home screen.

The story is an illustration of care vs neglect. The care that Caít receives is not effusive, but sure and steady. She’s repeatedly shown that her feelings and preferences matter, and that she is in a home where her presence is a joy.

It’s in Irish and English.

posted by bunderful (2 comments total)

This is such a perfect film. Slow and deliberate, but never boring. Completely suffused with the point of view of the main character. So beautiful, with so much to say about the universe that is inside every child. It ends at the perfect point, leaving the viewer wanting resolution, but refusing that, because this is still the beginning for Caít, not the end.

I think it's better to say it's in Irish. There are scraps of English, and one character who speaks it exclusively (which says so much about him), but be ready to read subtitles for 90% of the film if you're not an Irish speaker.
posted by rikschell at 11:07 AM on March 21, 2023 [4 favorites]

The part where Cait is peeling potatoes at the table :)
posted by bunderful at 4:07 PM on March 22, 2023 [2 favorites]