Stephanie Daley

Hilary Brougher's Stephanie Daley, revolving around a teenage girl accused of killing her newborn baby, might easily have degenerated into an admonitory after-school-special-type flick (especially since Stephanie's story is juxtaposed with that of the forensic psychologist assigned to her—a woman who gave birth to a stillborn child and is pregnant again, while also being faced with the possibility that her husband might be cheating on her). But Stephanie Daley transcends its potentially soap-operatic narrative, thanks to a script that is both sharp and subtle, and remarkable performances by Amber Tamblyn, Tilda Swinton, and Timothy Hutton. The fragmented narrative style, which shuffles the chronology as doctor and patient inch toward a revelation of whether the baby was intentionally killed or not, is occasionally confusing. But in the end, Brougher fashions an appropriately bleak, wintry ambience for her somber tale, which maintains a tone of ethical ambiguity that's entirely fitting. A dramatically compelling film that raises serious moral questions without serving up easy answers, Stephanie Daley is highly recommended. [Note: DVD extras include two audio commentaries (one with director Hilary Brougher, costar Amber Tamblyn, and cinematographer David Morrison; the other with producers Lynette Howell, Samara Koffler, and Jen Roskind), a 12-minute “making-of” featurette, five minutes of deleted scenes, PSAs, and trailers. Bottom line: a fine extras package for a moving drama.] (F. Swietek)