Elena (Julia Chavez) is a single mother working hard to provide for her son, Tom (Israel Rodriguez). She drives a forklift at a local factory, barely making enough to make ends meet. Tom begins making trouble for her at home, acting out as many children do after divorce when he cannot see his father. When his behavior becomes disruptive at school, she takes him to the doctor for advice. Without a word to Tom, the doctor prescribes a cocktail of drugs to treat his newly diagnosed ADHD.
While Tom’s behavior at school and home improves, his grades begin slipping as he suffers from insomnia induced by his new medications. He acts out again, refusing to take his pills once his schoolmates begin making fun of him, encouraged by his teacher’s mud-slinging. Things come to a head as a tragic incident places Tom in the hospital. Elena faces a choice: continue the treatment which is obviously harming her son or stop the treatment and face losing custody of Tom for medical neglect.
The Other Tom is a mixed bag at times. While the production is breathtaking in cinematography, the performances on screen are occasionally stunted by a lack of experience. The story in The Other Tom is compelling at times and confusing at others: I’ve never heard of Child Protective Services taking a child away because their caretakers stopped ADHD medication. I had a personal motive for reviewing this movie. When I was 7, I was diagnosed with ADHD and put on treatment which was eventually halted when non-medical alternatives served me better.
There were many aspects of The Other Tom which lined up with my own experience including hateful teachers, uncaring doctors, medication woes, and the thoughtless words of adults. In these elements, The Other Tom really shines. It’s rare to see a movie about a child with ADHD that isn’t riddled with stereotypes. This movie sidesteps many of those issues by centering Tom’s situation and feelings with the plot, revealing the many social issues which turn kids with ADHD into ‘problem children' at school. Because of the way it addresses the over-medicalization of children’s psyches and its striking cinematography, The Other Tom would make a welcome addition to any public library shelf. Highly Recommended.
What type of film series could use this title?
The Other Tom would be a perfect fit for films about children’s mental health or neurodivergence.
Where does this title belong on public library shelves?
The Other Tom would be a welcome addition to drama shelves.