Molly's Pilgrim (1985)

This is quite a touching, low budget, drama that spends a little time with “Molly” (Sophia Eliazova). She and her parents are recent emigrants to the USA and having already anglicised her name, she is keen to integrate at school. Her teacher is supportive, but “Elizabeth” (Andrea Lawn) rather looks down her nose at her, and encourages others to laugh at her pronounced vowels. With Thanksgiving looming large, the class are given the task of understanding it’s pilgrim provenance and that includes the making of a doll to represent either the new arrivals or the native Americans who welcomed them. With loads of help from her mum (Polina Klimovitskaya) they create their own small definition of a “pilgrim” - one that doesn’t quite conform to the norm that “Molly” thinks she needs to fit in, but maybe she is soon to realise that that’s the whole point? It’s really a story of family devotion and societal integration, and though there is no time to get to grips with the issues of school bullying and ostracisation, it still makes it’s point about the value of inclusive teaching and open-mindedness in people of all ages. Keep an eye out for the author who pops up, enthusiastically, as the lollipop lady.