Jodie's zenith

A lot of suspending of disbelief is needed for the plot, circumstances and the overly idyllic ending.

Yet embedded in this is the best and possibly most moving performance that Jodie Foster has ever given in her life (so far, I fervently hope). The rest of the cast support well because they're also solid but they're almost incidental to the story in some ways, like the gilded frame around an old master painting.

She manages to send the message with crushingly sweet tenderness and beauty: that Nell Kellty is the real thing, it's the rest of us that need to wake up. It's hard not to envy her, it's far, far easier just to fall in love.

There are some incredible scenes and vignettes in this film. The scene of Nell remembering her dead twin, out by the lake, through the mirror pull me apart every time I see them. There's a great deal of Jodie's real self in this; the tenderness and the loneliness. I think that's why her performance feels so superb.

Look for the daisies she places in the eyes of the skull of her dead twin sister, that'll have you swaying like a "ta-ay in-tha win'".