Its hard to read her expression.
Is she scared…or is she someone to be feared?
We have no idea, but right off the bat, we want to know.
When she arrives at the door, we quickly suss out that its Thanksgiving.
The house is a swirling buzz of several generations of Krishas relatives and in-laws preparing for the holiday.
But theres something about her presence there that feels unwanted.
Just beneath the surface theres a feeling that her connection with these people is tenuous, shaky.
The din of loud conversation, barking dogs, and frantic preparation seems to overwhelm her.
And the camera moves and darts around to show us how unsettling all of this activity is for her.
And theres plenty in Fairlchilds performance that will remind viewers of Gena Rowlands untethered performance in that 1975 classic.
The only question is: how messy?
Krishais a tightly coiled spring of a movie full of hope, trust, resentment, and shame.
And its snowballing sense of impending doom is masterfully engineered.
Its a small, modest film, but its impact is anything but.
Well, stort of.
Krishas story may be over.
But a whole new chapter of her fragile existence is just beginning.B+
