Her Name Was Jo

After watching the trailer I thought this film had the potential to be great. Unfortunately that wasn't the case. The shaky camera movements and what sounded like the same song playing on repeat every five minutes became intolerable. Felt like I was watching a music video. After about an hour in I had to turn it off. 4 stars.

Mary Cate Williams is Jo,a ten year-old girl whose mother has died and is living in Virginia with a drug addicted father. She leaves home with her best friend and they embark on a journey to find her biological father. They encounter a colorful cast of characters along the way. Williams is excellent and the supporting cast fine. The last parts of the film were a disappointment, especially a scene with Jo and a counterpart speaking to each other with only music playing without explanation. Subtitles are needed as the two girls are sometimes impossible to hear due to bad audio and too loud and annoying music in the background. The soundtrack is a major drawback; the singer ain't Bob Dylan. Overall, worth a watch for Williams performance.

A rare jewel in the tornado of super hero movies. The journey of Jo is not just the search for her biological father. It is far more a joint journey for the spectators with Jo as she coldly penetrates the world of adults with her only friend Selma. While the movie can be summarized in a few sentences, the emotional attachment we develop for Jo and her friend grows enormously up to the end. Heartbreaking with very dim lights of hope. Mary Cate Williams delivers a sensational performance, supported by the touching help from Eliza Duca. A movie to watch with your heart.

I am not fond of children being the main characters in movies with the exception of IT lol but wow these girls were incredible. Joe is such a great character and it's so simple but so deep. Really pulls at your heartstrings and the bootstraps! I Really enjoyed watching that and never heard of it and prime popped it up for me and I am glad it did. It's so easy to look past someone and only see their behavior or facial expression or clothes or smell they have and never understand even on the furthest level how much unbelievable stress and grief and weight some of us carry and would never tell you otherwise. A sad reality in every aspect. Very well done film.

At first I was kind of reluctant to watch an hour and a half during movie about two ten year old girls. But the film pretty much captivated me right from the start. Mainly due to it's really nice paced dreamy but realistic filming, ànd the heartwarming solid acting of the two starring roles. In contrast to their ages, their performance showed real friendship, persistence through willpower and maturity so incredibly well I could hardly believe it.

The story too was very well written. It was able to show realism parallel to symbolism without disturbing, no even strenghtening the main theme line.

During the movie, the acting and story increase to build a symbiotic relationship and keep lifting one and other to a higher level, and create such a strong final outcome.

Most definitly worth watching.

If you like this movie, be sure to check out 'The Dynamiter' as well..