Heartland Film Festival: Amy & Sophia
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“Amy & Sophia” is the tale of two damaged young women who shirk off their overbearing family members to find a bond of friendship between each other. The film, directed by Adam Lipsius from a screenplay by Emma Raine Walker, who also plays one of the leads, is generally well-acted and has some moving portions.
Some of its strains wander into British soap opera territory, helped along by a sappy-sweet musical score. Still, it’s a portrait of two distinctly drawn characters who we find ourselves rooting for and identifying with.
Walker plays Sophia, a budding young artist living with her grandparents (Isla Blair and Julian Glover). Orphaned at a young age, there appears to be instances of mental health challenges in her life -- possibly even institutionalization.
She is a gifted artist, but her paintings, which always incorporate butterflies, go beyond flights of imagination. Sophia actually finds herself stepping into this world, which are rendered in gorgeous animated sequences. She sees this as not just daydreams but an entire other world -- one where she’d prefer to spend her time, rather than being hectored by her grandmother.
A few doors down in their quaint little British town, Amy (Ali Rodney) has just moved back in with her mother (Denise Van Outen). Again, the movie doesn’t explicitly state what her troubles were, though we suspect it has something to do with alcohol abuse. Amy doesn’t have any artistic exploits as an outlet, and as such she’s crushed by the indifference from her mom, who works all the time, and painful memories of her past.
At first having a few unpleasant bump-ins, the women eventually start hanging out and talking. Sophia shows Amy her paintings and encourage her to try her hand. Amy’s frenetic slashes of color underline the pain hidden in her soul.
Some scary encounters with local heavy partiers forges the friendship further, as Amy briefly takes refuge with Sophia’s family. But past troubles will soon come calling, endangering a future that had seemed hopeful.
There aren’t a lot of surprises in “Amy & Sophia.” It makes up somewhat for its maudlin plotting with strong female characters. Liked how Amy’s mother and Sophia’s grandmother were gifted with backstories and dimensions, instead of just existing to service the lead characters.
Everyone has a story to tell, if we’re willing to look and listen.