LIKE SUNDAY, LIKE RAIN
A flawed portrait of lonely artists, best saved for adults.
Should You Watch It?
LIKE SUNDAY, LIKE RAIN has real strengths. The friendship between a lonely 12-year-old prodigy and his new nanny can be appealing, and young Julian Shatkin gives an especially good performance in a demanding role. The musical soundtrack is also memorable and mesmerizing.
But the film's humanist outlook leaves its broken relationships without a real solution for healing. Its open-ended conclusion creates a depressing mood rather than the closure the story needs. The content is also substantial, including 29 obscenities and profanities, smoking, references to sex, and lots of selfish and immoral behavior.
For your family, wait for home, and reserve this one for discerning adults who can weigh its themes and content carefully.
The Story
NO SPOILERS — WE KEEP THE SURPRISESReggie is a 12-year-old child prodigy living in isolation in his family's Upper Eastside mansion while his mother prepares to join her husband in China. When his nanny quits, Eleanor, a young bartender who has just lost her job, is hired as a replacement.
Eleanor must adjust to life among the wealthy while caring for a boy whose abilities far exceed those of most adults. As the summer unfolds, the two lonely artists become fast friends and help each other navigate difficult lives.
Is It Any Good?
Three stars means this is sometimes appealing but ultimately unsatisfying. Young Julian Shatkin's performance as Reggie is especially good, particularly given the demands of the role. The musical soundtrack is memorable and mesmerizing.
The film's main weakness is its ending. Like many independent movies, it remains too open-ended and creates a somewhat depressing mood. A small glimmer of hope does not provide the closure the story needs.
The Worldview
The film presents a light humanist worldview, placing human beings at the center. It also has a romantic view of relationships and art, including the idea that art can heal the hurts experienced in life. Some pagan elements appear as characters behave in whatever way they see fit.
The story values friendship between two lonely people and portrays art as a source of comfort. Yet its repeated focus on broken relationships does not offer a real solution for healing. The film looks to human connection and artistic expression, rather than God, to answer its characters' pain.
Scripture affirms God's nearness to the wounded: “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds” (Psalm 147:3). That hope reaches beyond the film's human-centered answer.
The Content Guide
The specifics — spoilers included by nature — so you can judge for your own family.
Content Summary
Light humanist worldview makes humans the central focus, mixed with a Romantic view of relationships and art (including an idea that art can heal the hurts experienced in life) and some pagan elements as characters often behave in whatever way they see fit; 29 obscenities and profanities, partial depiction of a girl urinating in the bathroom with sounds; a guitar is dropped out a window onto the street in anger; it’s implied an unmarried couple lives together, boy tells friend he’ll never get a girl to sleep with him; boy takes shirt off in bathroom, painting of a partially nude woman in a museum; man drinks a beer while watching TV, girl works in a bar that serves alcohol, woman asks for a drink to be delivered to her room; some cigarette smoking; and, boy pays people to help him disobey and lie to his parents, woman lies on a job application, woman lies about her experience in a job interview, property of others is destroyed out of anger, couple fights constantly, mother is rude to her maid and son, mother ignores her son, girl fights bitterly with her parents, family ignores a hospitalized family member close to death, nanny disobeys parental instructions for her charge.
Talk About It
Questions for the drive home, the dinner table, or the youth group.
The film centers on two lonely people who help each other through pain. What does Scripture say about carrying another person's burdens, and where might your family practice that more faithfully?
Galatians 6:2 · Romans 12:15The story presents art as something that can heal life's hurts. What good can art do, and why can it not replace God's healing?
Psalm 147:3 · James 1:17Several characters lie, disobey, or act selfishly. What makes honesty difficult, and what does God ask of us when we have done wrong?
Ephesians 4:25 · 1 John 1:9The film leaves broken relationships without a clear solution. What does biblical reconciliation require from those who have caused harm?
Matthew 5:23–24 · Colossians 3:13The Final Word
This is a sometimes appealing drama with a strong young performance and beautiful music. But its unresolved brokenness, depressing ending, and substantial adult content make it better suited to careful viewing at home. Our answer is WAIT FOR HOME — ADULTS ONLY. For other choices, see.
