Im honestly not sure why this film is rated so low. I have never read the book, but have wanted to watch the film for some time as I was curious about Natalie Portman's directing debut. I thought the film was so hauntingly beautiful. I honestly wasn't expecting that such a large part of the film would be about mental illness. But I thought the film did a great job of portraying it. I was incredibly moved. But moreso, I really quite liked the camera techniques she used to make it feel like you were watching through Amos' eyes. I think it really helped to tell this story of son and mother. I suppose some people may not have liked the "story elements" from the film. Perhaps, they felt it was making the film drag, but I quite liked them. Gave the film a very dreamlike quality but more importantly really helped tied towards the end. A bit of foreshadowing. I thought the acting was quite good too. All in all, I enjoyed and would recommend.
