It feels almost obscene to be talking about a potential major awards contender for 2027 when this year’s Academy Award nominations have only just been announced. Yet that is exactly the level of praise that Josephine deserves. It is a deeply moving and emotional film, made even more powerful after learning that director Beth de Araújo based the story on an event from her own childhood. It is also a deserving winner of both the Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award at this year’s Sundance Film Festival.

Within the opening ten minutes, Josephine establishes the devastating tone it carries for the rest of its runtime when eight year old Josephine (Mason Reeves) takes a wrong turn in the park during an early morning run with her father Damien (Channing Tatum). There, she witnesses a man (Philip Ettinger) committing a horrific sexual assault on a woman (Syra McCarthy) in broad daylight.

It is an excruciating scene to sit through, as cinematographer Greta Zozula frames the attack from Josephine’s point of view. The woman’s screams are haunting, and although the first person perspective is extremely difficult to watch, it serves a meaningful purpose. It places the audience directly in Josephine’s experience and, just as importantly, ensures that Mason Reeves never had to be physically present for the filming of the assault itself, protecting her from the most disturbing elements. It is a detail many viewers may not consciously notice, but it reflects the level of care and responsibility running throughout the film.

It quickly becomes clear that neither of Josephine’s parents is well equipped to help their daughter through such a traumatic experience, which is completely understandable. No parent is prepared for their child’s innocence to be taken away in a matter of seconds, especially in such a barbaric way.

Josephine’s mum, Claire (Gemma Chan), comes across as the gentler presence, seeing psychiatric help as the best path forward. Josephine, however, reads this as punishment for something she did not do and even runs away to avoid the sessions. Damien is the polar opposite. He comes across as a “man’s man” who was beaten by his own father, which makes his struggles with his temper more understandable, along with his bleak worldview. That outlook leads him to enrol Josephine in self defence classes, which get her into trouble more than once, even though she believes she is simply following his instructions.

It is in Josephine’s interactions with her parents that audiences will likely feel the most frustration. Neither of them is capable of communicating clearly with their child, and they often say things that make you want to scream internally as a viewer. Their contrasting parenting styles lead to a series of aggravating moments for both Josephine and the audience, especially as she struggles with the decision of whether to testify in court.

Even in moments of intense tension, the film avoids presenting a simple right or wrong approach to an almost impossible parenting situation. It is easy for viewers to sit at a distance and judge what should or should not have been said, but the grief and emotional turmoil driving both parents explain many of their poor decisions. When faced with something this tragic, there is no clear roadmap for how to respond.

All of this is amplified by a set of truly magnificent performances. Hollywood has seen many outstanding turns from child actors in recent years, but you would be hard pressed to find one that matches the level of work delivered here by Mason Reeves. We do not yet know how the year will unfold, but based on this performance alone, she would be fully deserving of a Lead Actress nomination.

The same can be said for Channing Tatum, who delivers the finest work of his career so far. It is rewarding to see his range given the space it needs to shine, and the authenticity suggests he draws meaningfully from his own experience as a father. Gemma Chan is equally worthy of awards attention, delivering a performance that is restrained and devastating, matching the emotional weight of her fellow cast members throughout.

Outside of the main storyline, de Araújo also takes on the flawed justice system of the United States, where a criminal can be free to live their life as long as they post the right amount of bail, able to haunt the victims of their crimes, and sometimes receive a relatively short sentence for something so terrible. There is also the ingenious depiction of the rapist as Josephine’s ghost, haunting her steps wherever she goes. That, coupled with a spectacular but terrifying score, is enough to send shivers down your spine and could even place Josephine within a horror sub genre.

Masterpiece is a word that is thrown around all too often, but the way Josephine breaks down, piece by piece, the ugly truths around an unfathomably difficult topic is handled beautifully. It is undoubtedly a difficult and sobering watch, but also incredibly profound, and will likely appear on many best of the year lists even though we are only a few weeks into the year.