It can be quite a challenge to address the subjects of death and grief when children are involved. Yet we have seen it done in quite a few Coming-of-Age movies, as facing death is an inevitable part of everyone’s rite-of-passage experience.

In Joshua Shreve’s 2014 film Chasing Ghosts, the young protagonist, 11-year-old Lucas Simons (Toby Nichols),  is obsessed with death. Lucas develops his unusual (for someone so young) obsession after his brother (who is also his best friend) loses his life in a traffic accident.

The boy (an avid film fan and aspiring filmmaker himself) finds a strange hobby – filming funerals at the local cemetery to cope with his grief. One day the boy catches a ghost-like presence, the recording of which swiftly becomes viral on the YouTube channel where Lucas shares his cinematic efforts. The video’s success turns Lucas into a sort of local celebrity, as TV channels compete with each other to have him on their shows.

Meanwhile, Lucas is excited to meet with local author Chris Brighton (Tim Meadows), who recently underwent a near-death experience and has subsequently released a book on the importance of enjoying every moment of our lives – living in the NOW. Boy and author strike up an unusual friendship as Lucas finds in Chris, a role model who is always ready with advice about dealing with his newly attained celebrity status and the typical worries of adolescent boys (young girls).

Despite the intriguing premise and the outstanding actors in the aforementioned lead roles (the supporting cast delivered a mediocre performance), Chasing Ghosts struggles to grab its audience’s interest.

One is left with the impression that director Joshua Shreve was not quite sure until the very last moment what kind of movie he wanted to make:  1) a dark one about death, 2) one that was primarily a Coming-of-Age film with a young boy who learns how to deal with his fears and gain an understanding of what matters in life, 3) a pre-teen comedy featuring school dances and first heartthrobs or 4) a story of an inter-generational friendship in which a wiser, older guys helps his younger buddy shake off the shyness and enjoy life. Any of these variants would have been a good film on its own, but mixing them all ends up causing nothing but frustration…frustration that eventually leads to boredom.

However, the film is not a total waste of time, as scenes (especially the final one) make sense and transmit a message. To the point that I’m am almost ready to believe that if all of the unnecessary “stuffing” put into some scenes was edited out, Chasing Ghosts would make an excellent short film.

Throughout the years, I have always argued that Coming-of-Age is a process that is not necessarily tied to a specific age range. People go through life-changing processes in distinct times of their lives and often come out bruised, changed or liberated as the result of happenings and experiences.

This argument can be brilliantly substantiated by watching Eric Hueber’s 2014 movie Flutter. In it JoLynn (Lindsay Pulsipher), a young mother and her nine-year-old son Jonathan (Johnathan Huth Jr.), struggle to navigate life after the boy’s father departs on a self-discovering journey — leaving them to fend on their own.

Jonathan suffers from glaucoma, which, left untreated, could cause permanent damage to his eyesight. Expensive treatment is not an option, and JoLynn is forced to secretly grow marijuana (illegal in Texas where the action is set) and then mix it in with brownies to help alleviate the higher-than-normal pressure in Jonathan’s eyes.

That is enough to provide a unique twist to the story, but it’s the boy’s pet pig Wee Wee and their joint adventures that most people would find wickedly entertaining.  After all,  who can resist a piggy rodeo — especially one set in the Cowboy mecca of Texas?

Flutter has an indie feel to it — thanks to the subject matter and the way it’s presented — and to the musical score. The latter is accurate because it’s essentially part of the narrative itself, as the music is performed by Jonathan’s father who is more talented as a musician than responsible as a parent. Indeed, parenting (its responsibilities and challenges) is a central theme of the film. The cute scenes with animated sea monsters, representing Jonathan’s fantasy world, nicely contrast the wonder world of childhood with “real life” and its trials.

While the story failed to draw any strong emotions in me, it’s entertaining — unusual for such a gritty narrative. It does an excellent job in portraying the sacrifices (and even mistakes) that parents make for their children’s well being.

The mother-son relationship, while not unique as a motif in this film (see my review of Pure or Beasts of the Southern Wild), is accurately and poignantly portrayed, which is guaranteed to win the film some fans (either mothers or sons or both).