There is untold damage that sexual predators like Harvey Weinstein have perpetrated upon the world. It begins, of course, with the victims, but it doesn’t end there. The impact it has on those who observe these actions is palpable and horrific as well. Filmmaker Kitty Green dramatizes this in The Assistant, a searing fictionalized account of what operating in the shadow of someone like Weinstein can do to a young woman. Hell, it even shows how a virus like that can infect everyone in the circle, regardless of gender. Opening this week, it’s a flick that will be a tough sell for the masses, but anyone looking for high quality independent cinema at the start of the year would do well to seek this one out. Just brace yourself. The film is a drama, focusing on a day in the life of a young assistant to a powerful movie executive. Jane (Julia Garner) is hoping to one day be a producer, but for the moment, she’s the newest assistant at a prestigious company, one run by an unseen exec everyone lives in fear of. We follow her as she goes about her daily routine, which includes the expected assistant tasks, but also cleaning up his office, which might include finding strewn about jewelry or disinfecting his couch. When a young woman from the Midwest is flown in, put up in a fancy hotel, and given a position as the newest assistant, Jane fears for the girl, knowing what is unsaid. As the day goes on, Jane struggles more and more with what the entire office is complicit in, herself included. Green writes and directs (she co-edits, too), with music by Tamar-kali, as well as cinematography by Michael Latham. Supporting players include Kristine Froseth, Makenzie Leigh, Matthew Macfadyen, Jon Orsini, Noah Robbins, and more. Julia Garner is fantastic in the movie. She doesn’t have a ton of dialogue, but her eyes, as well as facial expression, tell you everything. There are haunting sequences where you just see these little changes on her face. Garner commits to the role with a quiet urgency, seen even clearer in a sequence where she attempts to finally talk to someone about what’s going on. The way she’s not heard, and moreover, the way she’s heard but shot down, is heartbreaking. As you watch her body language change, you can tell that this is an experience that’s going [...]