Big Picture Big Sound

Warning: review includes spoilers, as explained in opening paragraph.

Something happens early in "Mouse," the new movie by filmmaking duo Kelly O'Sullivan and Alex Thompson, that needs to be discussed when talking about their great new film. While the incident puts the movie in motion, seek out "Mouse" first before reading this review, should you not want to know what occurs. But, most importantly, please do seek "Mouse" out.

The movie takes place in the summer of 2002, when everyone is buzzing with excitement for Summer Vacation. Best friends Minnie (Katherine Mallen Kupferer) and Callie (Chloe Coleman) are juniors and heading into their senior year of high school. The two friends couldn't be more different: Callie is popular and outgoing, and Minnie is much more quiet and reserved and often lives in Callie's shadow. Minnie knows that, but it's never a point of contention because at the end of the day they are comfortable in their relationship. Sometimes, unlikely pairs make the best friendships.

High school social standings aside, there's a stark contrast between Callie and Minnie's lives. Callie's family has money and lives comfortably, and Callie's mother Helen (Sophie Okonedo) is supportive of her daughter. Minnie is too embarrassed to bring people to the tiny home she shares with her mother Barbara (Tara Mallen) plus a foster baby and several rescue animals. While Minnie is never overtly jealous of Callie's life, it's hard to ignore the vast differences.

On her way home one day, Minnie is offered condolences from a jogger who knows her as being "Callie's friend." Minnie is confused by the driveby apology, but her intuition causes her to sprint to Callie's house. There's a group of people scattered throughout the front yard, and Minnie learns that Callie has died in a car accident.

Minnie's world is upended because she has never imagined living a life without her best friend. As someone who hasn't even hit her senior year in high school this is Minnie's first experience with true grief, and "Mouse" delicately examines loss through Minnie's eyes. A lesser movie would lean into the histrionics that come with playing grief. As filmmakers, O'Sullivan (who wrote the screenplay) and Thompson are much smarter than that. They find authenticity in experiencing grief. Sure, Minnie lashes out and fights with her mother, but she's angry. It feels real, and never like Kupferer was told to play to the back of the theater.

O'Sullivan and Thompson last collaborated on the 2024 film "Ghostlight," which was one of the best films of that year. "Ghostlight" and "Mouse" have their share of similarities, but it never feels like the directing duo are playing the same note. "Ghostlight," which co-starred Kupferer and Mallen, who are real life mother and daughter, was a story about a family unit experiencing their loss in different ways (that movie centered on the father of the family, Keith Kupferer, who is Katherine's father and Mallen's husband).

Both films, when pitched to a potential viewer, could seem like a depressing sit, but they are movies that deal with tragedy in humane ways. They also teach a valuable lesson that no one ever gets over an unimaginable loss; the pain never downgrades and it never takes a day off. As life continues grief continues, and it morphs in ways where the load doesn't always feel so heavy. Both movies show that finding comfort in grief can come from unexpected places. They are two beautiful films in conversation with each other.

Kupferer had a sizable supporting part in "Ghostlight" but "Mouse" belongs to her. For an actress still new to her career, "Mouse" gives her an opportunity to stand front-and-center and bring us through Minnie's journey with grief and the possibility of healing. We know Minnie is hurting and wants to be able to call her best friend, even when she is smiling and taking a romantic interest in Kat (Iman Vellani), who works at a video store. Kupferer brings immense nuance to her character, making her feel all the more honest.

The movie doesn't belabor the relationship that grows between Minnie and Callie's mom Helen, because it's obvious they both need each other. While they are living through the same loss, Okenado beautifully shows that Helen doesn't know what it's like to be a teenaged girl who just lost her best friend, and Kupferer's Minnie doesn't know the pain of losing a daughter. O'Sullivan's screenplay navigates these similarities and differences with ease. May O'Sullivan and Thompson keep being a bright spot in independent filmmaking, because "Mouse" is one of the very best films of the year.