`The Blue Car" is a sensitively drawn and acted coming of age film about a difficult period in a young girl's life. An introverted 16-year-old poetry student (well played by Agnes Bruckner) is neglected by her working mom. Her dad is absent and she constantly has to take care of her psychologically unstable younger sister. She escapes by writing poetry, and her Advanced Placement English teacher encourages her to enter a writing contest. But is he just a concerned adult or a sexual predator?

Meg is a bright and creative high school student who has trouble coping with her dysfunctional family, and her duties as a "substitute mom." Her divorced mom is constantly working and seems to care more about getting a promotion then spending time with her kids. As a result, Meg constantly has to supervise her mentally unstable sister, Lily. Lily is angry because she doesn't get the attention she needs. She refuses to eat and she stabs the skin on her foot until she bleeds.

Her father is never around, so she lacks a positive male in her life. Her poetry teacher, Auster fills the gap. He appears to care about her, and he encourages her to dig deeper into herself in her poetry. She writes a superb poem titled "The Blue Car" which is about her father's abrupt exit from her life. Auster also enters her in a poetry contest that would take her on a trip to Florida, which would provide an escape from her problems at home. When a family crisis shatters her world, she turns to Auster for comfort. Their relationship threatens to evolve beyond professional boundaries.

Despite the subject matter, the film lacks titillation or exploitative sex scenes. The film is refreshingly tasteful and restrained in its approach.

The two most interesting performances in the film are by young girls. Agnes Bruckner (as Meg) and Regan Arnold (Lily) play off each other well. Both of them are promising young talents.

It helps that "Blue Car" was written and directed by a woman. She is able to dig deep into Meg's head and give us the story from her perspective, which is a refreshing change. If Vladimir Nabakov's "Lolita" were written from the female protagonist's point of view, it might have turned out something like this.

This film is head and shoulders above the usual films about teens. It compares favorably with "Smooth Talk (1985), " a fine early Laura Dern vehicle, which took a completely different approach to a similar theme.