A startling debut from writer-director Sofia Coppola (Francis Ford’s daughter). Although bearing the marks of a novice, including occasionally overt symbolism and unsure pacing, this impressionistic tale of five teenage daughters who end their lives in an affluent 1970s suburb at times captures the pained longings and awkward humor of adolescence in a way that only a few film masters have done. Shy giggles, cautiously held hands, and even all-out rebellion each have a certain magic here – that of the tortured and charmed experience of youth.
