Powder

A film set in the American provinces. Jeremy grew up in the cellar of a farmhouse. When his grandfather dies he is brought out and placed in an institution. The people of the town call him Powder; his skin is entirely white, he has no hair and his appearance draws everyone's attention. He is sent to school. He learns very fast, remembers every book he reads, and the teachers notice at once. There is another side to him: a connection with electricity. Metal objects move towards him, bulbs blow, and he feels what the people he touches feel. The town treats him two ways. Some teachers and a deputy try to protect him; most of the young people at the school are hostile. What the film is interested in is not the gift but the response to difference: nobody asks him what he is, everyone tells him what he should be. The most remembered scene comes after a hunt; Powder touches a wounded animal and makes the hunter feel what he has done. Sean Patrick Flanery plays Powder. Mary Steenburgen, Lance Henriksen and Jeff Goldblum are in the cast. Victor Salva directed. A suitable choice for anyone who likes the fantasy dramas of the 1990s. For a viewer looking for science fiction consistency, the film takes no interest in explanations and keeps the matter on an emotional plane.