This 2022 film is based on Claire Keegan’s tiny novel Foster, which struck me on a very personal level. The book is not even 100 pages long, but it’s unforgettable. Here’s the trailer:

The story revolves around round a young Irish girl whose parents seem unable to take care of their growing brood of children, and they send her to live with some extended family for a while. The kid is scared by everything and doesn’t trust the kindness of her temporary family.

The film is a pretty flawless adaptation. Everything about it is understated beauty – it is calm and gorgeous. It’s mostly in Gaelic but it doesn’t matter – it’s so visual and emotive that it almost doesn’t need the subtitles. It was nominated for an Oscar and though I don’t much follow awards, it feels like it could have been nominated for several more.

Catherine Clinch is brilliant as the girl (named Cait in the film). She does so much with body language and physical movement, you can’t take your eyes off her. She transforms throughout the thing – I watched the beginning after it was finished and she seems like a different actor. She seems to grow before your eyes throughout the film.

The other two leads are terrific as well. Carrie Crowley plays the foster mother with an irrisistable tenderness and patience, doing tiny things, a tilt of her head, a hint of a smile, a pause before delivering a line. Andrew Bennett plays Kinsella, the (foster) man of the house. When I read the book, that character reminded me of my dad, and despite zero physical resemblance, Bennett did the same. Even my wife (who didn’t read the book) mentioned the similarities.

Just like the book, the story is a simple one, almost hypnotic while you wait for something to happen. By the halfway point you realize that has happened, it’s happening in real time. There’s no real reveal, there’s no twist, but it’ll hang around in your mind and heart for a long time.

I only found it because what I was reading about the film adaptation of Keegan’s newer novel Small Things Like These mentioned this one. It’s an instant favourite. Seek it out.