There have been some memorable parent-child films I’ve seen of late: Nowhere Special, Ezra, and Ghostlight, to name a few. Here we have a single mother named Janet who lives with her 11-year-old daughter Lacy in rural Massachusetts. What really drew me to this film is its connection to the theater world, as it’s directed by playwright Annie Baker, who won the Pulitzer Prize in 2014 for her play The Flick. This gentle, albeit slow-paced film captures the intricate and strong bond between a mother and daughter, bolstered by the strong performances of Julianne Nicholson as Janet and Zoe Ziegler as Lacy.

As someone raised by a single mom, I immediately identify with Lacy, who loves being with her mother but often gets swept up in her own imagination. Now, I don’t think I have her audacity and forthrightness, which Ziegler handles with aplomb. It opens with Lacy making a call from a summer camp cabin’s payphone with a dramatic statement, “I’m going to kill myself if you don’t come get me.” Then we see the next day that Janet arrives to pick her up with her boyfriend Wayne (Will Patton).

The movie is broken up into three chapters, kind of like a three-act play, made of the people who come into their lives. First, we’ve got the taciturn and aloof Wayne, Janet’s long-lost friend Regina (Sophie Okonedo), and Regina’s ex Avi (Elias Koteas), who’s now seeing Janet. There’s an interesting scene between Wayne’s daughter Sequoia (Edie Moon Kearns), who becomes fast friends with Lacy when they visit a local mall. As Lacy has a tough time making friends, the easy rapport with Sequoia is a pleasant surprise, but of course, it’s dependent on Janet’s relationship with Wayne, which comes to an abrupt end.

At first, it’s not clear what Janet does, but later we learn that she’s an acupuncturist, and there’s a plaque outside her office that spells out the name of her business, Janet Planet. It’s kind of a kooky name that also describes this movie about a tween gradually finding her ‘orbit’ in the world. During her alone time, Lacy delves into a vivid inner world that starts to spill over into reality. She’s comfortable being by herself and playing with her makeshift dollhouse filled with glass figurines as if they’re items of worship in a DIY shrine.

Baker peppers the film with elements of spirituality, though not in much depth. Avi’s cult-like theatrical troupe performance very much feels New-Age-y, and Avi proselytizes at the dinner table about becoming one’s own god. It seems that neither Janet nor Lacy buy into that, and they seem to be wrapped up in their own bubble, so to speak, to focus their attention on something bigger than themselves.

I enjoy the heart-to-heart scenes between mother and daughter. “…I can make any man fall in love with me if I tried. And think it’s sort of ruined my life.” Janet says, to which Lacy replies, “Can you stop?… Stop trying.” It’s a delicate but profound moment, and it makes me miss those tender moments I had with my late mom when I was a tween. That said, my quibble is that the movie can feel distant and a bit standoffish, it takes a while for me to really get into the characters. The slow pacing can feel grating and test one’s patience, but mastering the rhythm and tempo of a narrative takes time.

Thankfully, the performances are charming. I love Nicholson, who’s a grossly underrated actress who deserves more leading roles. There’s such a quiet grace about her and she’s able to evoke emotions without saying a single word. The same can be said about two excellent character actors, Okonedo and Koteas. Now, Ziegler is such a revelation in her feature debut; her quirks and outspokenness are quite adorable. She’s definitely one of the most memorable performances by a young actor in recent memory.

The retro visuals bring back 90s nostalgia, shot with grainy film stock and natural lighting by cinematographer Maria von Hausswolff. While it doesn’t tug my heartstrings the way other minimalist parent-child-focuse films like Petite Maman or Nowhere Special, overall Baker did an impressive job tackling the cinematic medium. Janet Planet is a film where not much happens outwardly, but the real substance is beneath the surface.

Have you seen JANET PLANET? I’d love to hear what you think!