The movie does not go out of its way to entirely vindicate Frank … not even when Mary’s grandmother comes swooping down from Boston. Played with poise and reserve by Lindsay Duncan, she’s an initially mysterious figure—a woman of wealth from whom Frank has removed himself in so many ways that it’s hard to accept them as related at all, at least at first. While Flynn’s back-story scenario is probably likely to seem very silly if examined under a harsh “plausibles” microscope, Mark Webb’s smooth and assured direction, along with the performances of Evans and Duncan, make the unpacking of the relationship both narratively intriguing and emotionally credible, at least for the time that you’re watching them. Which is largely what counts.
What follows is a custody battle where the adult players remain very civilized to each other throughout. Even though Mary herself is freaking at the possibility of being separated from Frank. Their bond remains interesting and funny throughout, as their conversations exploit but don’t oversell Mary’s precociousness. “Is there a God?” she asks Frank during one of their conversations. “I don’t know,” he says, trying to be earnest and honest. “Just tell me,” she eyerolls. The movie consistently serves up funny morsels like this.
Also figuring in the eventually heart-tugging proceedings is a one-eyed cat named Fred. And a potentially awkward, among other things, romance between Frank and Bonnie. Evans and Bonnie’s portrayer, Jenny Slate, met while making this movie and dated in real life for some time after it wrapped. They have real chemistry on screen, and despite the online chatter rejoicing in the disparity of a superhero actor and an ostensibly down-and-dirty comedienne romancing in real life, they don’t play here as any kind of odd couple, but rather as a solid and likable one.
The movie overplays its hand at times, as when Frank brings Roberta and Mary to visit a hospital maternity ward for … well, a reason that doesn’t quite make it. But “Gifted” is on balance a good-hearted entertainment that manages its plot curveballs, and everything else, with a show of compassion that’s a kind of tonic for our Increasingly Strident Times.
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