In Monica, a new indie film from the Italian director Andrea Pallaoro, a daughter returns home to Ohio to care for her dying mother. The long-awaited homecoming is fraught with complications. Monica’s mother (played by the marvelous Patricia Clarkson) is confused and in pain. She does not recognize her estranged daughter, whom decades earlier she threw out for identifying as transgender. Monica (played by Trace Lysette) balances precariously between the unresolved hurt of that abandonment and her filial duty. Pallaoro maintains that this is not a “trans film”—it’s not centered on Monica’s gender identity. Rather, it is about her difficult and circuitous journey to forgiveness. A screening of the film will be held at the IFC Center in Greenwich Village, followed by a Q&A with Clarkson. AIR MAIL contributor Sam Kashner moderates. —Paulina Prosnitz