Don't listen to the Hype. It's awful

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Mostly, the movie is committed to the value of a good time.

This film tells the story of a 7 year old girl, who witnesses her parents' divorce, custody battle and subsequent build-ups and break downs of relationships."What Maisie Knew" is very interesting because it is told from a child's perspective. It follows that the girl sees and hears, and we see her world through her play and her conversations to other adults. Though the plot is rather grim, the filmmakers manage to portray the events without being overly dramatic. This makes it surprisingly easy and pleasant to watch. It pains me to see Maisie being thrown like a ball from one adult to another, yet Maisie is still holding up without showing negativity. It shows that Maisie's world is untainted and innocent. It almost feels like there is a glimmer of hope and love through the child's eyes, despite being entangled in the messed up adult world.

"What Maisie Knew" is a very touching dramatic film from 2012. It is currently available on NetFlix Instant Download Streaming. The directors are Scott McGehee and David Siegel. The screenplay is by Nancy Doyne and Carroll Cartwright.The mother might be seen as the main actor here, Julianne Moore, and this is the best I've ever seen her, I think. She gives a slightly fiery performance, and "slightly" is perfect, avoiding an overacting job suggested by her role as a slightly successful rock and roll star. She's terrifically awful and you come to hate her, appropriately. The father (Steve Coogan) also puts in a sharp performance playing the lively, fun parent who is a selfish womanizer, hiding, sometimes, his flaws from his daughter. His relationship with the mother is not detailed very far because it is mostly one of distance and disdain. And mutual abuse. The real star here is the girl, an utterly charming and beautifully effective actress, Onata, Aprile. She succeeds not by her delivery of great lines, but by her expressions. It's all because Henry James understood something delicate about children in these situations: they know what's going on and don't say it. And they also don't let it affect them because they simply can't afford to, or because they become hardened in some little ways, making them withdraw or act out. That Maisie maintains a delicious sweetness without playing the victim is quite remarkable, and Aprile is brilliant. Dale Haufrect

This was a very beautiful and powerful movie. If by beautiful and powerful I am understood to mean that the director, writer, actors and producers made the best representation of sadly, what is too often a common story.The child actress steals the movie. She is adorable, never overacts or is other than a real little girl with very understandable emotions.I thought all the other actors did a very good job too, with maybe the exception of Julianne Moore. I'm not sure how old Susanna was supposed to be, but Julianne seemed too old for this role. Her role though is the most thankless as Susanna is a thoroughly unpleasant person, manipulative, egocentric, demanding, heedless, and ever so selfish. Her one shining moment comes towards the end of the film.This was very upsetting for us to watch, but I think it is necessary because there are many little Maisies and Max's probably that most of us know.

Maisie is a young girl living in a fancy apartment with her rock star mom and art dealer father. When they get a divorce, things get messy. Maisie becomes a weapon and trophy for the parents to use against one another. Soon the father's new girl and the mom's new boyfriend meet each other and don't hit it off at first, but then reveal their feelings of sadness towards their meaningless marriages. They both fall in love and try to rescue Maisie from a lifetime of being just another object to fight over. Onata Aprile was very convincing and an amazing actress to choose; she played the role of Maisie very well. The soundtrack was sad, the plot was even more so. Maisie is only a film character; imagine the kids every day who aren't as lucky to escape? Maisie appears wise beyond her years and damaged by the divorce; she is shy, extremely reclusive and quiet until she starts hanging around with Margo and Linchon. This is such a depressing yet beautiful film. It was based very loosely off an 1800's novel by the same name. It's really worth watching, try it!