REVIEW: HOW I SPENT MY SUMMER VACATION

HOW I SPENT MY SUMMER VACATION, the 3rd feature-length effort from writer/director Kenneth R. Frank is a gentle, meandering coming-of-age-story that follows the fortunes of Grace (Raquel Sciacca) a young girl on the cusp of womanhood that suffers from a few fears, namely the water, flying, and I suspect of leading an unfulfilling life.

Grace's mother Clara (Christina Elise Perry) hauls the family down to Grandpa's house, former big-league ball player Richie (Jerry Colpitts) while dad Tom (Chris Mollica) is away on what turns out to be a failed business trip.

Grace has big plans on a trip to the Galapagos islands with her father, but those abovementioned fears seem bound and determined to get in her way. Throughout the course of this swift-moving (82 min) film Grace learns a lot of lessons, namely that life is exactly what you make of it, nothing more, nothing less. The overall theme seems to be that disappointments are going to keep coming at you no matter what you do, and you can either face those disappointments and fear head on, or let them get the better of you. Nobody really has all of the answers, and that's okay, because life doesn't come with a handbook. Just do the best you can with what you've got.

The performances are very good across the board, and Raquel Sciacca in particular as Grace carries the story well.

However, I will say this: The film is not going to be for everyone.

There are no great struggles to overcome, no unsolvable problems to wrestle with, no major conflicts to resolve. Yes, Grace has her issues, but they are inconvenient rather than crippling. Yes, there's family drama, but nothing worse than any ordinary family has to deal with. Really, the film feels grounded in a reality that you don't find in a lot of stories. In real life, there are a lot of moments that just kind of go by without explosions and high-stakes drama, and this film feels like a little slice of reality.

I'm sure that not everyone will appreciate the fact that "not a lot happens" in this movie, but I think in its own quiet way, it works at what its trying to say and therefore avoids some standard film tropes in the process, which is not an easy feat to pull off at the best of times, and certainly not in a small-budget indie.