Suncoast (2024)

A teenage girl living with her mother has to take her brother to live in a specialised centre.

There, she strikes up an unexpected friendship with an eccentric activist amid protests over controversial medical cases.

A poignant indie teen drama, director and writer Laura Chinn's debut semi-automatic story is a beautiful film about saying goodbye and coping with the death of a sibling while dealing with her own existential crisis.

The director offers us a beautiful journey with a very solid script that knows how to make the most of its moments of drama as well as its small touch of comedy, which makes a film that captivates you thanks to the power of its protagonist Nico Parker, who ends up becoming a real revelation, carrying the whole process of this captivating drama on his shoulders.

Surrounded by two great actors such as Woody Harrelson and Laura Linney, Parker's performance is much more consistent, which allows us to always be connected with the whole journey and the experience that Doris' character is living.

We are also treated to an enjoyable drama, but full of overwrought moments that ask us to wrestle with terminal illness and the ethics of euthanasia.

The director's looks are admirable and emotionally ambitious, but they still feel a little forced into a family drama that takes up much more of the attention, which means we lose some character in secondary characters who seem quite interesting to continue to get to know.