What Maisie Knew

Sensitive and almost unwatchably perceptive about dysfunctional families -- and it's acted with knife-sharp precision.

The film is touching, filled with taste and care, but not enough to avoid being coy and sentimental.

On the surface, this indie does sound like standard-issue material, but its dynamics are far more complex than its simple exterior.

What Maisie Knew gives the audience a ground-eye view of its mesmerizing title character, a plucky, charismatic New Yorker who navigates downtown bars and building lobbies with the street savvy of a pro.

The result is a film that deeply engages us on multiple levels. Not only do we wonder what Maisie knows and how she knows it, we want to get this seedling to a place where she won't have to be transplanted every day.