Jules of Light and Dark

Contemporary Texas. Maya (Medel) and Jules (Holt) are leaving the city for a camping trip with friends. On their way back they have an accident, but luckily do not get hurt. The girls are saved by Freddy (terrific, still underrated Robert Longstreet), oil sector worker. Maya and Freddy are spending a lot of time together and become friends, but at that time of her life the girl needs a completely different type of friend. Jules of Light and Dark is a well-balanced and emotionally subtle debut, in which young characters are trying to find the way how to survive puberty painlessly. Laabs exploits space and "magic hour" brilliantly, which makes his film visually similar to American Honey by Andrea Arnold, Hide Your Smiling Faces by Carbone or Mud by Nichols. Yes, it is another  coming-of-age movie, but it has been a while since someone told a story about loneliness, insecurity and making hard decisions in such a mature way.