Potato Dreams of America

Two very strong performances anchor “Potato Dreams of America,” Seattle-based filmmaker Wes Hurley’s thought-provoking dramatization of his childhood in his native Russia and, later, as a teen in Seattle.

It’s entertaining, and even sexy at times in ways that are distinctive and inventive.

The film, sweet as it is, fails to strike a manageable or engaging enough tone as it treads some overly familiar territory...

The dream in Potato Dreams of America remains more fantastical, dramatic, than rooted in reality. Such fantasy is part of what makes the film such a good watch, as well as an emotional one.

The story behind the film is engaging and worthy, but in overall execution, it feels uneven.

The very existence of Potato Dreams of America is its own happy ending: It's a calling card, at least, that prompts curiosity over what stories, or whose stories, Hurley will tell next.

Potato Dreams of America is a sweet and endearing story about a boy and his mother that go through a total transformation to get the life they always wanted.

Hurley’s script is quite funny, especially in the first act, where Potato and Lena do their best to tolerate those who are intolerable among them.

Hurley harvests his storytelling skills, resulting in a bumper crop of emotions, with laughter and tears in equal measure.

Potato Dreams of America efficiently offsets its eccentricity with earnest emotion, sharing a queer coming-of-age story that is simultaneously silly and stirring.