Film Screening: Josephine

Beth de Araújo’s Sundance sensation locks into the perspective of troubled eight-year-old Josephine. During an early morning run with her father through Golden Gate Park, Josephine witnesses a stranger rape a jogger. Her father, Damien, chases the man off, calls the police, then assists in the suspect’s apprehension. In an instant, Josephine’s innocence is shattered. Throughout the legal fallout, she’s forced to make complicated choices while grappling with profound trauma she isn’t able understand, let alone articulate. She starts acting out in school and at home, displaying concerning behavior requiring intervention from her feuding parents, counselors, and child psychologists. Through expressive visuals and tactful formal conceits, de Araújo crafts a humanistic gut-punch of a movie, a harrowing crucible that illustrates the fragility and resilience of developing minds. Please note: this movie contains a graphic scene of sexual assault.