With powerful performances, gorgeous cinematography and a score to make you weep, The Daughter is independent drama at its finest.

Picking a highlight from the uniformly excellent cast is no mean feat, but here kudos must go to casting director Nikki Barrett for some outstanding choices – the best of which may be Odessa Young as the titular daughter Hedvig.

The convivial geniality of the opening few scenes gradually makes way for gut-wrenching drama as The Daughter‘s families are inexorably torn apart from within, and the nature of family and relationships are unflinchingly scrutinised with honesty, passion and emotional intensity.

Beautiful and powerful, The Daughter occasionally veers towards the melodramatic – but who cares when every element is this good? A staggering debut from writer-director Simon Stone.

RATING: 5/5

INFORMATION

CAST: Geoffrey Rush, Odessa Young, Paul Schneider, Miranda Otto, Ewen Leslie, Sam Neill

DIRECTOR: Simon Stone

WRITER: Simon Stone

SYNOPSIS: Christian (Schneider) returns home to discover a long-buried family secret which threatens to usurp the lives of the friends and family he left behind.

The Daughter was first reviewed by One Room With A View at the 2015 London Film Festival.