Ringolevio

This is an indie film in the best and worst ways. On the one hand, it refuses to explain anything--you'll either connect with it or you won't. On the other hand, there's something refreshing about its choice to sit with the characters (particularly the protagonist Ada, played with awkward brilliance by Nicole Velasko Lockhard). Are there stakes? Sort of. Ada and her girlfriend Marissa (Meredith Johnston) are staying with Marissa's family over the Easter holiday. The three brothers and Marissa have clearly had a difficult upbringing, and there's an interesting tension that develops as Ada tries desperately to fit in while Marissa seems to resent her for it. Ada, meanwhile, clearly has her own way of dealing with the world--mostly through collecting bugs and being by herself. What results is an intimate exploration of loneliness and communication, and there's something there even if I'm still not sure what it is. Maybe just life.