See It or Skip It: Is Anybody There?

Bill Milner has cornered the market on playing earnest, adorable British lads who, despite being friendless and lost, tug at your heartstrings and open your eyes to a new way of looking at the world.

Last year he charmed the pants off of audiences in the sweet, heartfelt, coming-of-age film Son of Rambow and now he’s back in the bittersweet, somber, coming-to-the-end-of-age film Is Anybody There?

Milner stars as Edward, a 10-year-old boy whose parents have converted their house into an old age home. While his mother (Anna-Marie Duff) struggles to keep the business afloat and his father (David Morrissey) wrestles with a mid-life crisis, Edward is forced to confront life’s scariest truth: That, inevitably, it ends.

As a way of coping, Edward becomes obsessed with ghost hunting and paranormal activity until a new resident, former magician The Amazing Clarence (played by the amazing Michael Caine), arrives and teaches him how to connect with the living.

Is Anybody There? offers a slice of life without trying to be pithy or overly witty, just simple, gentle and honest. The problem is, simplicity can occasionally lead to boredom and the film has a tendency to drag.

Skip it and wait for DVD. Such a small film should translate very well to the small screen.

—Sasha Perl-Raver