Adult Adoption
Directed byKaren Knox
Written byEllie Moon
StarringEllie Moon, Rebecca Northan, Michael Healey
Release date
2022
Running time
90 minutes
CountryCanada
LanguageEnglish

Adult Adoption is an independent Canadian feature film. The comedy-drama[1] is Karen Knox's directorial feature debut and the debut screenplay from actor and playwright Ellie Moon, who also plays the lead.

Plot

Adult Adoption follows Rosy (Moon), a 25-year old bank teller who aged out of the foster care system at 18 and has since managed to build a stable albeit rudimentary and lonely life for herself; she dresses like a very young girl and eats nothing but Kraft Dinner.

Rosy has a series of socially awkward encounters, including running out of a yoga class because she was emotionally overwhelmed with the instructor tries to reposition her. She is lonely and longs for human connection. A coworker, Helen (Leah Doz), who is very close to her own mother, suggests she try to find an older adult to adopt her.

Rosy reconnects with Nola (Chelsea Muirhead), with whom she lived in a group home, when Nola calls the bank to transfer money to her "new family". The new family's bank account seems to be a business account for a church, and Rosy suspects it's a cult. Several days later a dangerous-seeming man shows up and pressures her to complete the transfer.

Rosy meets Brian (Michael Healey), through a website that facilitates meetings between young adults looking for an adult adoption with older adults who are looking to adopt young adults, but Brian soon makes it clear he is interested in a dating relationship, and when he discovers she's not, becomes emotionally abusive. She meets Jane (Rebecca Northan), whose relationship with her own daughter is estranged. After seeing Jane on an adoption date with another young woman, she calls Jane, who doesn't pick up and doesn't return the call or emails. Soon after, she learns Nola has been trying to get in touch, a dangerous-seeming man shows up and pressures her to complete the transfer. Emotionally overwhelmed, she reaches out to multiple people, including Helen, and reacts to their responses in ways that threaten the relationships.

Rosy rescues Nola from the cult. Jane finally calls and asks Rosy to visit, but when she shows up she finds Jane drunk, and Jane soon becomes verbally and emotionally abusive. During the painful exchange, Rosy realizes she is a "real person", which without a family she's never felt before. She has a normal human interaction with the owner of the coffeeshop in her building, reaches out to Helen to try to start mending the relationship, and returns to yoga class, where she allows the instructor to reposition her. The film ends on a hopeful note that Rosy will indeed be able to form normal human relationships.

Cast

Production

Filming was originally expected to begin March 25, 2020, but was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic.[2] It was filmed over 17 days on location in March 2021 in Toronto and London, Ontario.[2][3][4][5] London Arts Council provided a grant to help with funding.[4] Run time is 90 minutes.[3]

Release

It was released in 2022.[6] The film was shown at the Glasgow Film Festival,[7] SOHO International Film Festival,[8] Forest City Film Festival,[5] and Whistler Film Festival.[9] The film was a finalist for an Emerging Canadian Artist award at the Calgary International Film Festival.[3][10]

Reception

Tabassum Siddiqui, writing in The Globe & Mail, said that "for all its quirks, at its heart Adult Adoption is a thoughtful coming-of-age story that will have you rooting for its complicated heroine" and designated the film a "Critic's Pick".[11] Amber Wilkinson, writing for Screen Daily, said the film had perhaps "one plot strand too many" and that Moon's background as a writer for stage showed in the script, which "struggles to make the connecting moments between scenes flow freely", but that once the scene had changed, the script "strikes a good balance between everyday absurdity and underlying emotion."[7] Chris Knight, writing for the National Post, said the "plot is ultimately a little thin – the cult, for instance, feels a bit too spot-on Handmaid’s Tale, and the resolution of that storyline oddly simple – but there is still much to admire".[1] As of November 2023 the film had a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.[12]

References

  1. 1 2 Knight, Chris (January 13, 2023). "Film review: Adult Adoption is a film about connection". National Post. Retrieved November 12, 2023.
  2. 1 2 Murphy, Aisling (2023-01-12). "In debut film 'Adult Adoption,' Toronto playwright Ellie Moon spreads her wings". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2023-11-13.
  3. 1 2 3 Grieve, Isobel (January 10, 2023). "Adult Adoption Validates The Masses: Writer Ellie Moon and Director Karen Knox Sit Down for an Interview". Toronto Guardian. Retrieved November 12, 2023.
  4. 1 2 "Locally shot movie about adult adoption screens this weekend". Canadian Broadcasting Company. February 2022.
  5. 1 2 Belanger, Joe (16 January 2023). "London-tied film Adult Adoption explores loneliness and love". London Free Press.
  6. ↑ "Adult Adoption - Rotten Tomatoes". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2023-11-13.
  7. 1 2 Wilkinson, Amber (March 8, 2022). "Adult Adoption: Glasgow Review". Screen Daily. Retrieved November 12, 2023.
  8. ↑ Eberle, Rick (2022-09-20). "SOHO International Film Festival Unveils 2022 Lineup". EIN Presswire. Retrieved 2023-11-13.
  9. ↑ "Whistler Film Festival announces film lineup". Pique Newsmagazine. 2022-11-03. Retrieved 2023-11-13.
  10. ↑ "Calgary Film finalists for emerging awards announced". Calgary Herald.
  11. ↑ Siddiqui, Tabassum (January 12, 2023). "A cast of Toronto theatre veterans save indie film Adult Adoption from becoming a cinematic orphan". The Globe & Mail. Retrieved November 12, 2023.
  12. ↑ "Adult Adoption - Rotten Tomatoes". www.rottentomatoes.com. Retrieved 2023-11-14.
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