Film Review: Gifted

Though known for playing the openly earnest, idealised embodiment of America (according to, eh, Americans) Steve Rogers in Marvel’s Avengers, Chris Evans has repeatedly shown that he’s a talented actor with underappreciated range. In Gifted, his character is described by another as the “quiet, hot, damaged guy”; a statement that conceals the layers he brings to a rumpled, homespun individual trying to navigate unchartered waters.

Evans plays Frank, the uncle and guardian to seven-year-old math prodigy Mary (Mckenna Grace, uncannily like a young Drew Barrymore). Frank is determined to let Mary enjoy a normal childhood, but his formidable mother Evelyn (Lindsay Duncan) has more elaborate plans for her granddaughter. As a custody battle ensues, details about this broken family and their divergent motivations emerge, showing how no-one can see clearly though painful histories.

This is director Marc Webb’s first feature since his hyper-busy, studio-weighted work on The Amazing Spider-Man films, and the visual and emotional deftness he brought to (500) Days of Summer re-emerges through this simpler story. Webb creates moments of arresting beauty, such as Frank and Mary discussing God and faith in silhouette against a blood-red sunset, Mary’s shadow playfully swinging out of her uncle like a jungle-gym. But the often schlocky narrative is structurally clumsy, leaping from courtroom to schoolroom to contrived separations and schmaltzy bonding moments.

Though featuring great performances and an undeniable warmth, Gifted’s best moments are overshadowed by its cynically tear-jerking formula.