Julia Hart’s Fast Color is a rare and wondrous hybrid: a heartfelt story of familial devotion cleverly wrapped inside a thriller with a sci-fi edge. From the minute Ruth (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) bursts onto the screen we know this is a woman desperate to survive. Descended from a long line of women with secret, supernatural abilities, Ruth has been on the run since leaving her mother Bo’s isolated home in the arid American southwest (Palm Springs audiences will find many of the New Mexican settings familiar). Returning to that safe haven brings a chance to heal old wounds, and the risk of making them irreparably worse. Grounded performances from Mbatha-Raw and Lorraine Toussaint as Bo provide the emotional wellspring, while a tempestuous score, measured special effects, and perceptive cinematography make Fast Color required big-screen viewing.

In competiton for the New Voices New Visions Award.

Director Julia Hart and Producer Jordan Horowitz will be in attendance January 10.