What Maisie Knew

What Maisie Knew

Poster for What Maisie Knew

Julianne Moore, Alexander Skarsgård and Steve Coogan star in this contemporary retelling of the Henry James novel, revolving around a sensitive seven-year-old girl living amidst the increasingly bitter divorce of her parents and the custody battle that ensues. More

Aging rock star Susanna (Moore) and contemporary art dealer Beale (Coogan) are too self-involved to notice their neglect and inadequacy as parents - their fight for Maisie being just another battle in an epic war of personalities. As they raise the stakes with inappropriate new partners, the ex-nanny Margo (Joanna Vanderham) and the much younger bartender Lincoln (Skarsgård), the shuffling of Maisie (Onata Aprile) from household to household becomes more and more callous, the consequences more and more troubling.

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87 ^%Rotten
tomatoes®
10 reviews
Directed by Scott McGehee

2012Rating: M, Offensive language93 minsUSA

Drama

Director:: Scott McGehee ('Uncertainty', 'Suture', 'Bee Season')David Siegel
Writer:: Nancy DoyneCarroll CartwrightHenry James
Cast:: Alexander SkarsgårdJulianne MooreSteve CooganOnata AprileJoanna VanderhamSadie RaeJesse Stone SpadacciniDiana GarcíaAmelia CampbellMaddie CormanPaddy CroftTrevor Long

Streaming (3 Providers)

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What Maisie Knew | Reviews

87%112 reviews

Rotten Tomatoes® Score

All reviews on Rotten Tomatoes

Flicks, Team

For a film that’s based on a novel published well over a century ago, What Maisie Knew feels remarkably modern. But then Henry James had a knack for slicing through to reality, and what could be more depressingly timeless than parents behaving badly? At first glance, gorgeous young Maisie has a charmed life. She lives in a designer cool Manhattan apartment, has a hot mess musician mother (Julianne Moore - think Patti Smith mashed up with Courtney Love) and a smooth, waggish father (Steve Coogan).

A.V. Club

(What Maisie Knew) fails to bring much insight to what essentially amounts to a massive parental guilt trip.

TV Guide

A subtly ambitious film that's smartly written, beautifully acted, and perfectly directed.

NPR

Whether or not there is story plausibility here, there is an emotional integrity to every reaction Maisie has to every development.

Variety

Beautifully observed drama... cumulatively heartrending.

Total Film

A superior adult drama. Harrowing, heartbreaking but utterly compelling.

Time Out

Go for the performances.

The New York Times

Lays waste to the comforting dogma that children are naturally resilient, and that our casual, unthinking cruelty to them can be answered by guilty and belated displays of affection.

The Guardian

Features an excellent performance from newcomer Onata Aprile.

Hollywood Reporter

Tasteful melodrama benefits from uniformly strong performances.

Empire Magazine

The young Aprile is a standout in a moving, hard-hitting and surprising adaptation of the Henry James novel.

What Maisie Knew | Release Details

What Maisie Knew is available to stream in New Zealand now on Google Play and Apple TV and Academy On Demand.