an odd sweetness to Kat Candler's Hellion. Rather than broken characters focused solely on self-help and improving their own station, it's an attempt to salvage a family even though that family may be too damaged to repair. Characters who do bad things but are good deep down is undoubtedly saccharine, but it works thanks to Candler's sincere direction and earnest performances from lead actors Aaron Paul and Josh Wiggins." Rodrigo Perez of Indiewire criticized the film and said that "Admittedly heartbreaking and moving in its final moments, “Hellion” just can’t quite convince or coalesce its ideas of struggle, pain and fury in a meaningful or new way. Our charitable human nature may empathize with everyone's plight, but the recognition that much of its dismal sensibility is far too calculating and predestined is certainly disconcerting" but ultimately praised the cast performance by saying that Hellion, however, does possess strong characteristics in the form of performances—the teenager Josh Wiggins is definitely a stand-out that people will be talking about post-festival, and Juliette Lewis and the boys, Deke Garner, Jonny Mars and Walt Roberts, all deliver authentically convincing turns." Accolades References External links American drama films 2014 drama films 2014 films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films