The Tribes of Palos Verdes

"This was tragic and truthful, real as it was messy. It was a desperate urgency of pain needing to be felt in order to get to the other side. It is well-shot, communicating through a marriage of sound, color, and sense of place and atmosphere what it is to live and struggle beneath a more picture perfect façade of a quiet beachside town. Medina is a girl who loves to surf, whether it be to escape or enjoy life more fully, as she lives amidst the broken pieces of a family hurt and distraught, in a state of disrepair. Nothing comes easy or without sacrifice and it is precisely this devastating fact that motivates her to want to leave and find her own happiness separate from anyone or anything else. Her brother, Jim, and her are damaged beyond belief when upsetting news comes to their family and how they process it happens gradually over time. Each character devolves into their respective senses of madness, whether it be over something they can’t control or whatever plagues them more broadly internally. It, as a story, sparks to life and reminds that we grow through what we go through, whether it be more obviously or more subtly. "

"Good"