This glossy, at times harrowing, heart-tugger is dominated by the towering performance of Susan Sarandon as the determined and bolshie Michaela Odone, who takes on the medical establishment when her young son is diagnosed with a rare and normally fatal wasting disease. Sadly, Nick Nolte is far less successful as the boy's father, Augusto, sporting a bizarre Italian accent. You'll either love or loathe this intelligent, well-made wallow that's ably directed by Mad Max veteran George Miller. It's based on a true story - the boy, although still profoundly handicapped, grew to adulthood and died at the age of 30 in 2008.

Lorenzo Odone, a Virginia 5-year-old, develops a degenerative nerve disease so rare that nobody is working on a cure, so his parents decide to immerse themselves in research and tackle the problem themselves.