SPOILER DISCUSSION

1.Now that it’s the spoiler section I can talk about why I think the Rotten Tomatoes description feels so weird. Hunter’s condition only appears once she’s ignored and maligned by her husband and in-law’s. It’s obvious it’s a result of the lack of agency she feels and is confirmed by therapists explanation. Hunter was hung up on her own life which she saw as a kind of aberration. She was a “wound” afflicted on her mother, kept alive only because of of her mother’s pro-life convictions. The additional stress probably compounded the thoughts and feelings she was already having causing the condition to appear. Describing it as ennui feels reductionist because it implies that the pica developed as a result of witlessness or boredom with domestic life which is a far cry from how deep and complex Hunter’s trauma is explained.

2.At one point there’s a wide shot of Haley and Richie outside of their house, the latter tending to the garden with the former on the 2nd level balcony. They’re interacting until suddenly Richie disappears into his room out of frame, the same way he disappears and ignores her in their everyday conversations. He doesn’t really care about her and always sees himself as higher, in a loftier position. She’s just dirt. Speaking of which, I loved the use of dirt. It’s a realistic manifestation of pica

3.I really enjoyed Hunter’s relationship with Luay but felt that the transition from him thinking she’s a privileged brat to realizing the pains and tribulations she’s genuinely going through could’ve been developed better. It felt like we didn’t get enough time of the two of them really bonding and building the level of intimacy necessary for Luay covering for her escape at the end. I enjoyed the decision, but think it comes off as haphazard.

4. Despite my feelings with how the family drama aspect of Hunter’s life was developed (there should have been hints earlier on a better build up to certain revelations) , I did enjoy how it ultimately all played out with her feeling like she finally could make her own decisions in her life. She isn’t her father and is free of the guilt that he’s given in her own life. Her decision to then just eat in a mall cafeteria and have her abortion in the bathroom is poetic and I love how the credits keep playing on after showing women coming in and out of different walks of life just like doing their thing. It’s a weirdly comforting ending for such a hectic movie.