I have unconditional love for Maggie Gyllenhaal because she takes risks and isn’t afraid to play the gritty parts.

Her role in Steven Shainberg’s 2002 cult classic Secretary was incredible. Better still, her character in The Deuce (from the makers of The Wire) is unmatched in brilliance.

According to the Guardian, her latest role as Lisa, a hardworking kindergarten teacher and aspiring poet who becomes obsessed with a talented child, is already receiving rave reviews.

Here’s the trailer for The Kindergarten Teacher:

The film, directed by Sara Colangelo is being described as a “high-concept psychological drama”.

Maggie Gyllenhaal is just gripping in this, showing us a woman moving through imperceptibly subtle stages from passionate idealism to midlife breakdown and then to something darker still: something that can only be watched through your fingers.

There is similar praise from The Independent, which says that “the film finds a fresh source of vitality in Gyllenhaal’s presence”.

Watch through my fingers I will.

[source:guardian]