Allison (Jillie Simon), an idealistic grade school teacher, is presently teaching her students about democracy, and how this institution has made the USA the greatest country in the world – and then she sees that some of the kids she’s responsible for cannot afford lunch in the school cafeteria and thus have to go hungry and as a result also sleepy through the day. She addresses this with first the cafeteria personnel, and then also the school board, but the answer she gets is always the same, due to federal cutbacks in school lunch programs, lunch apparently has become a privilege for those who can afford it. So she makes up a plan to intercept the responsible congressman, Dennis Thicke (Eric Roberts), and address the topic to him directly – which means she has to overcome her own fear of public speaking. Sure, she does fine with the children, but with everyone else is a different matter for Allison. However, once she gets through to the congressman, she manages to find her mojo and does fine – until she lands in jail for harassment. So is this what the great democracy she has taught her students about has come to, or is there a silver lining on the horizon?

When it comes to political drama, things probably don’t get any sweeter than that – but sweet not as in sugar-coated but as in heart-warming, as the story of this film, rather than making a clear distinction along party lines and driving the message home with a sledge hammer accordingly, addresses an actual problem and supports standing up for oneself to make a change if classic politics fail to help. And all this is cleverly packed into a character-driven story with Jillie Simon giving her all portraying the very relatable lead with her everyday problems on top of everything else. And carried by an unassuming directorial effort, her challenges are really palpable. And all that said, keep your tissues handy, because the – spoiler alert – heart-warming ending will probably make you shed a tear or three.

review © by Mike Haberfelner

 

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