Written and directed by Kate Tsang
Starring Miya Cech, Rhea Perlman, and Leonardo Nam
Running time 1 hour 21 minutes
In select theaters on April 22

by Ashley Jane Davis, Staff Writer

“Magic is about making an audience feel something.”

Sammy is a thirteen-year-old girl who recently loss her mom in death. Being a thirteen-year-old girl is hard on its own. But without your loving mom? A black hole is a pretty accurate description.

In Marvelous and the Black Hole, we meet a family trying to “move on” in their own ways after losing the matriarch of the immediate family.

Sammy’s older sister, Patricia, is just too busy for Sammy. She IS overseeing an entire kingdom, I’ll have you know. Kingdom Cog, that is – in a popular video game. Listen, there is no judgment here from someone who has created Glastonbury Grove and the Black Lodge from Twin Peaks on my Animal Crossing island, but it’s clear she is living day to day in a fantasy of total escapism.

Dad’s method of escapism is working continuously. He is always ready to welcome a phone call of distraction. But it’s not only work that is keeping his attention. He has a new girlfriend and you get the feeling that his daughters think they have gotten a littleeee too cozy a littleeee too quickly. (The scenes between dad’s girlfriend and Sammy just made me cringe like I was reliving my own teen years.)

Dad is frustrated with Sammy because she is rebellious and keeps acting out. Why can’t she explore a more “acceptable” form of total grief avoidance like him or Patricia?? He concludes she needs to apply herself and insists that she register for a community college course over the summer focusing on helping adults become successful entrepreneurs. Thanks dad, sounds grandy. “When I feel meh, I work harder,” he says. He seems to believe the way to solve problems is to throw money at them. Eugh.

Maybe the distraction of a summer school course is just what is needed.

Sammy starts cutting class just about as soon as she starts – and you really can’t blame her when you spend a minute in that classroom. Who knew what adventures a chance meeting in the school washroom with traveling magician Margot would start! Margot instantly recognizes her younger self in Sammy (“I wasted a lot of time being angry”) and drags Sammy along to be her assistant in a magic show for children. Although Sammy TOTALLY wants like nothingggg to do with this weird show, we know right away that a very special bond has been made.

I truly love the effortless chemistry between the two leads in this. Rhea Perlman as Margot gives big Ruth Gordon energy (the highest compliment I can think of), and Miya Cech as Sammy is a total star who made me laugh out loud so many times. Oh wow, if I would have gone to school with Sammy… that would have been trouble.

I am really excited to see what director Kate Tsang does next! I loved the scenes with added animation and fun stylistic choices that show the real depth of Sammy’s imagination and emotions. A magic trick involving dad’s girlfriend was particularly choice… But also the way she chose to depict the story Sammy’s mom recorded for her (which she listens to nightly) was just beautiful. This movie has all the classic hits of growing up; school, cool bedroom, arcade, bike rides, forced family fun, parents who just don’t get it. Ahh, I just love it. I fully realize I enjoy art about childhood more than your average non-child, so I knew I would love this. But honestly, check it out! It’s the definition of charming.

It’s more than sweet and fun though. It is about grief – and some of the darkness that comes along with it. I truly love art about grief, because it’s something all humans have to deal with, yet often ignore. This film is a reminder that you have to face it, not escape it. Grief never stops when someone you love dies. It’s always there because you hold so much love for a person, but have nowhere to put it. Your love doesn’t shrink, and it doesn’t fade; it continues. When people say a big loss gets easier with time, it’s not that grief shrinks either, it’s that we grow around it. We learn to adapt.

For the first half of the movie, I kept thinking about how much I would have LOVEDDDD to have met a Margot after my mom died when I was Sammy’s age. When I was that age, I would never EVER admit it, but what I wanted more than anything was an older woman outside of my family to really talk to. But as the plot played out, I ended up thinking what might be even better is if I meet a Sammy when I am Margot’s age. Margot has a lot of wisdom and takes the time to draw Sammy out. She remembers what it was like to face tragedy at a young age. However, we learn that Margot doesn’t exactly have her own life totally figured out. She has a sadness to her too (all the best folks do!) Their friendship is an interchange, and Sammy helps Margot just as much as Margot helps Sammy. And that’s why I think this movie is special. We may have seen stories like this before, but why is that bad? Can’t we see more and more of them?? We never ever stop learning, and life is sweet when we let the universe help us out – in any weird or magical way it chooses.

P.S. Should I learn magic??