Bella Ramsey takes a break from killing zombies and avenging father figures, their usual pastimes in series The Last of Us, to fool around and fall in love in Sunny Dancer, a decidedly uneven but fitfully charming, YA-skewed British comedy-drama.
Cast once again as a stroppy, hyper-intelligent teen recovering from trauma, Ramsey plays Ivy, a 17-year-old whose parents (Jessica Gunning and James Norton) insist she goes to a summer camp catering specifically to teen cancer survivors like herself.
After the initial sulks and sarcasm subside, bonds are forged, virginities are mislaid, someone dies and many, many montages ensue to assorted bangers. While the bits of the script that were obviously drafted in advance are kind of cringe thanks to high doses of emotional glucose, the easily spotted interludes where the young cast, all of them fast-ascending talents, were allowed to let rip, cut loose and improvise their pretty little hearts…