Ava is a slow but decent coming-of-age drama about children trying to understand their parents and vice versa.

High schooler Ava (Mahour Jabbari) has a growing passion for music as she innocently navigates her way through the beginning stages of her teenage years.  Her mother (Bahar Noohian) and her father (Vahid Aghapoor) have been supportive, but they start worrying for their daughter when Ava’s curiosities about her friends, her romantic inklings, and her deep interest for music start to distance her from security and traditions.  Of course, these thoughts are inevitable with maturity, but it’s a bridge her parents are determined to occupy closely – too closely.

Even though Ava doesn’t necessarily offer much new material for the audience to unpack, it’s an admirable feature debut for writer/director Sadaf Foroughi with striking cinematography and a gut-punching performance by young Jabbari.  It may not set a new bar for the sub-genre, but Ava does provide plenty of strong breakouts for the cast and crew.

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Addison Wylie: @AddisonWylie