The Girl in the Park

A woman's daughter is kidnapped from a playground. Her family breaks apart. She loses touch with them. Now she is back to pick up the pieces. David Auburn's film never seems to be sure what it's about. The mother (Sigourney Weaver) deals with the ultimate loss, certainly, but The Girl in the Park also tries to be a spellbinder about a young, eerily familiar woman (Kate Bosworth) who Weaver creepily befriends. The film is often awkward, sometimes touching, occasionally riveting, but overall, it's slow, far too long, and muddled. The acting is decent, especially from the underrated Alessandro Nivola, but even that can't lift this film from the depths of mediocrity.