Family values, reproductive rights and pre-teen angst form the center of this contemporary Canadian drama. Dr. Finn Jefferies is talented, successful — and lost. After her longtime partner dies, Finn faces the biggest challenge of her life, suddenly raising an angry 11-year-old daughter, Zelly. Finn wants the best for Zelly, but her unbridled grief and the intensity of her work at an abortion clinic challenge her ability to be a responsible parent. Whether alone on her motorcycle or hopping into bed with a new, young lover, Finn struggles to create a safe and stable life. Meanwhile Zelly and her friends wander through Toronto smoking weed, shoplifting and skipping school, putting mother and daughter on seemingly parallel paths of self-destruction. While navigating the unsettling waters of grief, they uncover secrets and truths that will challenge who they are and what they know.

Filmmakers Dominique Cardona and Laurie Colbert, who also collaborated on My Feminism and Thank God I’m a Lesbian, use vivid music, crisp editing and sleek camera work to capture the raw emotion and inherent tension of these characters’ lives. The film focuses on the personal dramas of Finn and Zelly while exploring hot-button social and political issues such as abortion rights, the science of fertility and the realities of being a lesbian mom. Fueled by spellbinding performances, Finn’s Girl is a simple story of a mother and daughter in search of meaning and connections in a complex world. — BRENDAN PETERSON