A Light Beneath Their Feet (2015)

A high school senior must choose between enrolling at the college of her dreams and remaining at home to take care of her bipolar mother.

Director:

Valerie Weiss

Writer:

Moira McMahon

Stars:

DuShon Monique Brown, Taryn Manning, Carter Jenkins

4 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Credited cast:
DuShon Monique Brown	...	Cindy
Taryn Manning	...	Gloria Gerringson
Carter Jenkins	...	Jeremy
Madison Davenport	...	Beth
Maddie Hasson	...	Daschulla
Kurt Fuller	...	Dr. Rutter
Kali Hawk	...	Julie
Nora Dunn	...	Dr. Krolly
Agneeta Thacker	...	Amy Wally
Brian King	...	Paul
Phillip Edward Van Lear	...	Joe
James Leo Ryan	...	Tom the Mailman
Marilyn Camacho	...	Maria
Mike McNamara	...	Steve
Elvis Thao	...	Delivery Man

Storyline

Emotionally raw and uncommonly observant, this coming-of-age drama balances the pull of family obligation against personal aspirations. Madison Davenport beautifully conveys the mixture of fierce love and grueling weariness she feels while embracing her role as caregiver, a responsibility that threatens to consume the entirety of her life. And Taryn Manning is equally impressive in avoiding any trace of caricature in her portrayal of mental illness, preserving Gloria's dignity even as her behavior becomes more erratic. Director Valerie Weiss has found an ideal collaboration in screenwriter Moira McMahon Leeper, making her feature debut. By turns endearing, unsettling, and ultimately moving, A Light Beneath Their Feet is a triumph of empathetic filmmaking. There are no heroes and villains in this story, just ordinary people struggling to create a sense of normalcy in their day-to-day existence.

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Plot Keywords:

high school | f rated | medication | anxiety disorder | school cafeteria | 

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Taglines:

In a world where teenagers are either being ignored by their parents or taking care of them, growing up is the only way out.

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some teen sexuality and drug use

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official Twitter

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 October 2015 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Ph.D. Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Soundtracks

DIAMOND
Written by Amber Webber and Joshua Wells
Performed by Lightning Dust
Courtesy of Jagjaguwar
Published by House of Hassle, By Arrangement with Bank Robber Music

User Reviews

Mother-daughter relationship drama under trying circumstances

"A Light Beneath Their Feet" (2015 release; 90 min.) brings the story of a mother and daughter. As the movie opens we see the daughter Beth doing dishes, while her mom Gloria is taking prescription medication of some sort. Pretty quickly we get the idea that something is really "off" with mom (probably bi-polar), which pushes Beth, a senior in high school, in the unusual position of having to care for her mom, rather than the other way around, In the meantime, Beth, already accepted at Northwestern (her mom's school of choice because it's nearby) and also at UCLA (Beth's school of choice because it 's far away and the weather is perfect) needs to decide what to do. On top of all that, Beth has developed a small crush on a boy. At this point we're 15 minutes into the movie, but to tell you more would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.

Couple of comments: this movie is directed by up-and-coming director Valerie Weiss. Here she brings a tough topic, namely how a mother and daughter must tackle life when mom needs help. "You know can't take care of myself" Mom tells Beth early on. Can you imagine having to deal with that as a 17 or 18 yr. old? The movie is helped immensely by the lead performers, Taryn Manning as the mom and Madison Davenport as the daughter. Weiss paces the movie nicely and before you know it, the movie has flashed by. There are tons of great songs throughout the movie, many of them of the female indie-rock variety.

I never heard about this movie until I saw it at my local library the other day. So I basically took a flyer on this, and I'm glad I did. Nothing earth0shattering, but simply a nice 'little' movie about a mother-daughter relationship under some trying circumstances. "A Light Beneath Their Feet" is worth checking out!