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Yet, as directed by Ms. Foster, the film has a kind of purity of purpose and control that is very rare in mass-market movies. It avoids a lot of sentimental nonsense. It is also sparely (and well-) written by Scott Frank, the man who wrote the screenplay for Kenneth Branagh's "Dead Again."

"Little Man Tate" has a good deal of fun at the expense of "The Odyssey of the Mind," a sort of cross-country "mental Olympics" in which Fred participates at Jane Grierson's request. These are a series of contests at which gifted children display their skills to the amazement of academe. At one point the kids are seen trying the case of Goldilocks, charged with breaking and entering.

The movie never explores the biological roots of such special gifts, though it understands that terrible prices may have to be paid by the children themselves. This awareness gives the film its tension. 

Fred Tate (Hann-Byrd) is a gifted child: by age seven, he can play the piano backwards, paint like a master, and solve complex maths problems. But at school he's bored in lessons, and left doodling Da Vinci-style while other pupils frolic in the playground. Single parent mother Dede (Foster) comes into conflict with child psychologist Jane Grierson (Wiest), who takes the boy under her wing: tough-talking Dede is ready with the hugs, while Jane serves up macrobiotics and disciplinary lectures. Foster's directorial debut is a worthy attempt to explore a little understood subject, but the film is bogged down by an approach to Wiest and Foster's characters which polarises intellect and emotion. Hann-Byrd has more to grapple with, and perfectly conveys Fred's jumbled motives and acute sensitivity.

Gary Tooze

April 23rd, 2015