I got where Ross Partridge was going with Lamb, but I was definitely one of the uncomfortable viewers he described in his interview with The New York Times.
Lamb tells the story of David Lamb, a man who is slowly but surely losing everything. At the beginning of the film we see Lamb's father die, his wife apparently leaves him and he is also laid off from his job. Seeking redemption and reaffirmation of his own worth, Lamb begins spending time with a young girl, Tommie, who he takes on a trip from Chicago to the mountains to show her the world around her and expose her to true love.
For me, Lamb was an unpacking and an exploration. It unpacked and explored different forms of selfishness. From David refusing to tell Tommie anything about himself but expecting her to be fully honest with him, to his refusing to let her go home even after she asks to speak to her mother, to his relationship with Lonny. Many of the things David does over the course of the film are self involved and border on being unkind or heartless and yet there are still moments where we are touched by his clear affection for Tommie and we see just how lost this man really is.
I also thoroughly enjoyed Oona Laurence playing neglected pre-teen Tommie. This movie shows both the loss of innocence that has already taken place in Tommie's life due to the circumstances in which she grew up, juxtaposed with David's own efforts to do whatever it takes to preserve her innocence. Laurence very clearly shows the tension this creates and it is enjoyable to watch her try to entertain David's efforts to preserve her youth for as long as possible, while also at times railing against the way he views her--as just a little kid.
But, for all the beauty and development that I witnessed within this film, as a viewer, I could never quite shake the fact that I was essentially watching a kidnapping. I tried to see this as a man taking a neglected child under his wing as a daughter. Unfortunately, parts of the movie, such as the scene where Tommie spills coffee on herself and begs David not to give her a bath (a plea he ignores) before breaking down into tears and asking to go home, ruined this for me. Remember how I mentioned earlier that this felt like a film about selfishness? Well scenes like this drive that point home and make it incredibly difficult to sympathize with David. Not impossible. Just difficult. The ending (spoiler alert) also rubbed me the wrong way. After the journey the film took us on, something about it just didn't feel ... finished. It also made me dislike David just a bit more after I had grown to kind of accept him-- his final actions just seemed cruel and confusing.
Like I said, I got what the movie meant to accomplish and I think on a certain level it did accomplish that. But it isn't something you want to watch if you're looking for feel good or mush. There are parts that will make you squirm and parts that will leave a bad taste in your mouth. You will be confused and you might be a bit mad, but you'll come out having learned a lesson about what some people will do to seek redemption and about how relationships are made, develop and deteriorate.