The Yellow Handkerchief (2010)

The Yellow Handkerchief explores a realm of pain, hard-knocks and loneliness. Set in a southern town, three characters meet and unexpectedly go on a road-trip together. They struggle against self-fulfilling prophesies of fear and unworthiness and must look within to find the courage to live, love and to truly see and be seen by another person. The film offers solid performances across the board: William Hurt, Maria Bello, Kristen Stewart and Eddie Redmayne.

It's a road-trip movie that never ventures into the outlandish; The Yellow Handkerchief finds its groove, and walks the line, a nice balancing act that in the hands of another director or cast could have easily rested heavily on the melodramatic side but Hurt anchors the movie with his quiet rawness.

This kind of movie, with its delicate tone, gives Kristen Stewart the room to flex her artistic skills, to grow and blossom. Will the Twilight shadow fade away enough for her to be appreciated in projects like this? I hope so.

Available on Netflix.