“What We Hide” Unearths Pain of Addiction
One of the biggest epidemics in the United States is addiction. In rural communities especially, addiction to opioids and painkillers is a leading cause of death. What We Hide, originally named Spider & Jessie, shows the impact of death by overdose through the eyes of children who are both too young to understand and who know far more about drugs than they should. Written and directed by Daniel Kay, What We Hide is about more than our secrets. It’s about families fighting to stay together despite the hold addiction can have over them.
What We Hide wastes no time in setting up the new reality that Spider (Mckenna Grace) and Jessie (Jojo Regina) have found themselves in. The siblings learn their mother has died from a drug overdose, but there’s no time to grieve. Their main concern now is not being split up by their Child Protective Services caseworker, who they call “the baby snatcher.” Even before their mother’s passing, their care has been on CPS’ radar. Spider is fifteen, the de facto leader of the house who will do anything to make sure Jessie stays in her life.
courtesy of Gravitas Ventures
Mckenna Grace has grown up in front of the camera. It’s hard to believe she’s only nineteen because her impressive career includes I, Tonya, The Haunting of Hill House, and even the requisite guest appearance on CSI. What makes What We Hide an interesting step forward is that she’s an executive producer of the film. It’s her first time with this credit, but not the last, with the upcoming Regretting You also listing her as an EP. Since Grace’s breakthrough performance in Gifted, she has become a force in young Hollywood. There’s so much depth and variety to Grace’s roles that Spider feels like an earnest, angry, scared teenager, not a caricature of a kid breaking under the stress of this situation.
The heart and soul of What We Hide is the dynamic of Spider and Jessie. It’s easy to see why their names were the original title for the film. What the two kids are fighting for is what so many of us take for granted. To be with our family with food in our bellies and a roof over our heads. As the older sister who is more aware of the stakes, Spider has the weight of the world on her shoulders. She and Jessie are forced into an impossible situation that they’re far too young to solve. Spider’s choices may seem extreme and clearly flawed to the audience, but what else is she supposed to do? Neither option is particularly good for her or Jessie. Stay together, but keep their mother’s dead body hidden. Or separate to an unknown fate at the hands of a foster family. As scared as they may be, they’re still kids, and the moments of silliness we see are heartbreakingly sweet. Without a mother, they can buy all the junk food they want, and they do, but then when the CPS worker comes by and sees only candy in the cabinets, that’s a siren going off.
courtesy of Gravitas Ventures
There’s just a little too much happening in What We Hide for the balancing act to really pay off. As Spider and Jessie are coping with their loss, Spider is also falling for the checkout clerk (Forrest Goodluck) at the local market, while their mom’s violent ex (Dacre Montgomery) won’t take no for an answer about the whereabouts of their mom. It’s just one or two pieces of the story that tip the scales toward making the film seem a little too busy, but the performances keep bringing What We Hide back down to solid ground. Even though Goodluck and Montgomery only appear in a few scenes, they make the best of it. Montgomery with his intimidating, ominous smirk, and Goodluck with his gentle, artistic eyes. They’re both trying to figure out a way of life in this town, but each is going about it in a different way. Goodluck’s Cody chooses to see the beauty that exists here, while Montgomery’s Reece uses the rampant pain and addiction for his own benefit.
Toward the end of the film, there’s a conversation between Spider and Jessie about their mother and how they each remember her. Spider doesn’t have many kind things to say because she was old enough to see the reality of their mom’s addiction. Jessie calls their mother “sick,” but is adamant that she loved them. It’s this conversation that should have been further expanded in the film. How do you love and forgive someone whose choices have put you in a position you aren’t able to handle? How do you reconcile the pain with the love? Maybe that’s where the title of What We Hide comes from. We often hide our love when people hurt us or we hide our pain when we love someone. Neither is sustainable. Something has to break.
support your local film critic!
~
support your local film critic! ~
Beyond the Cinerama Dome is run by one perpetually tired film critic
and her anxious emotional support chihuahua named Frankie.
Your kind donation means Frankie doesn’t need to get a job…yet.
Follow me on BlueSky, Instagram, Letterboxd, YouTube, & Facebook. Check out Movies with My Dad, a new podcast recorded on the car ride home from the movies.