Directed by Brie Larson, Starring Brie Larson, Samuel L. Jackson, Joan Cusack, Bradley Whitford, Mamoudou Athie, Hampshire Linklater and Martha MacIsaac

Brie Larson’s directorial debut is a delight. I admit I was worried. I mean I love Brie’s acting work and have since her early days in The United States of Tara, but this was her directorial debut and a film about a woman who wants a Unicorn from a UNICORN STORE!

There is a genuineness about the film that does not require us to transcend disbelief and decide whether or not there are really Unicorns. This is a film about a woman who is on the cusp of adulthood. She’s bridging that point in time between school and a real job, trying to figure herself out and how she is going to develop independence. She loves her goofy parents but resents her dependence on them. All the opportunities ahead of her seem to conflict with who she is as a person.

Don’t be discouraged by overly critical reviews. The film does get silly at times but it’s fun and the performances are great. There is one scene in particular that I absolutely love and thinking of it puts a huge smile on my face anytime I go into a boardroom at work on a dull day.

Hope Brie directs more. She has a passion, intuition and a genuine joy about her that shines through her film making and we definitely need to see more of it on the screen.