Parents' Guide to The Florida Project

Director Sean Baker's incredibly powerful drama is a shockingly realistic look at modern-day "little rascals" who live in poverty but still experience the joy and humor of childhood. Dimpled troublemaker Moonee looks like a cherub, but she and sidekicks Scooty and Jancey (a direct reference to all the quirky, rhyming names of the original gang) are up for adventures big and small, whether it's soliciting for money outside an ice cream shop (they love sharing their soft-serve cones), sharing jelly sandwiches courtesy of the weekly mobile pantry, or exploring abandoned real estate developments. Their parents and guardians might be broke, and their situations might look miserable from the outside, but these kids know how to make their own fun. What's remarkable is how Baker never judges his characters. Halley and Ashley (who at the very least has a steady gig at the diner) don't make middle-class soccer-mom choices, but they love their children and will do anything (even if that means hooking or losing a friend) to keep their kids with them.

Dafoe gives an award-worthy performance as Bobby, the put-upon but somehow patient motel manager who must have faced his own struggles to end up working at the Magic Castle. He barks at the guests, particularly Halley, who's repeatedly late with her rent, but he's clearly empathic -- especially toward the kids. As Moonee and Halley, Prince and Vinaite (whom the filmmakers found via Instagram) share a heartbreaking mother-and-daughter chemistry. Halley makes so many iffy decisions that the climactic sequence seems nearly inevitable from the movie's outset. But viewers will feel gutted as the final scene unfolds, a dose of happily-ever-after optimism for kids -- and people -- who usually remain overlooked on and off the screen.