The film's heart is in the right place but it never rises above the level of a polemical melodrama.

Young Leyva has a smile that lights up the screen, but the film makes the mistake of depicting several of the characters as though they were villains from some lesser movie. That the film overcomes this approach is testament to its essential spirit.

Any Day Now is a movie of good intentions and bad wigs, warm-hearted but slightly oversimplified.

Less-skilled filmmakers might have gone overboard with forced emotion, plot contraptions and flat characters, but director and co-writer Travis Fine has crafted a deeply moving piece that feels rooted.