The film has enough empathy to go round – for a mother overwhelmed by a child’s bottomless need, and a child’s agony over the changing rules of their bond.

The playwright Annie Baker shows a deft cinematic touch in her largely autobiographical directing debut.

A tender yet subversive memory play set in western Massachusetts during the summer of 1991, about a dour little girl.

In its moments of humor – and those little moments of shock – “Janet Planet” really finds its footing, particularly within Ziegler’s stellar performance.