Getting to Know You

Skyler's first feature is a quiet, oblique character study which gradually gains in intensity. Heather Matarazzo (the geeky outsider from Welcome to the Dollhouse) underplays beautifully as Judith, a shy 16-year-old waiting in a bus depot with her brother. Here, she meets an older boy called Jimmy (Weston) who spins her heart tugging, but far fetched yarns about the love lives and domestic problems of the other strangers waiting for buses. Judith listens fascinated. Every anecdote deals with broken families or dysfunctional relationships. Loosely based on a collection of Joyce Carol Oates stories. the material could have been very grim, but Skyler - a documentary maker by trade - treats her variously damaged characters with warmth and gentle humour. She's helped by low key but affecting performances from Bo Hopkins, as a small town cop haunted by a tragedy in his past, and the wonderful Bebe Neuwirth, as Judith's affectionate but highly strung mother.