Watch The Black Balloon Online

When Thomas (Rhys Wakefield) and his family move to a new home and he has to start at a new school, all he wants is to fit in. When his pregnant Mother (Toni Collette) has to take it easy, he is put in charge of his autistic older brother Charlie (Luke Ford). Thomas with the help of his new girlfriend Jackie (Gemma Ward) faces his biggest challenge yet. Charlie’s unusual antics take Thomas on an emotional journey that cause his pent-up frustrations about his brother to pour out. |||| An adolescent boy from a most idiosyncratic family attempts to adjust to his new neighborhood as his sixteenth birthday looms on the horizon in this family drama from director Elissa Down. Thomas is about to turn sixteen, and as if adjusting to a new neighborhood, a new school, and new friends isn't enough for a teenage boy to contend with, his family is about as unpredictable as they come. His autistic older brother Charlie suffers from ADS syndrome, and attends a special school on the days that he actually chooses to go. His father Simon is an enormous cricket fan who is prone to holding intense discussions with his teddy bear, and his mother Maggie is a free spirit who sleeps with pretty much whomever she pleases. Recently, Thomas' mother revealed that she is pregnant. As a result, Thomas finds himself looking after Charlie much more frequently than usual. When Charlie strips half-naked and dashes into the neighbor's house in search of a bathroom, Thomas storms in after him and encounters pretty classmate Jackie - who is currently attempting to take a shower. Mortified, Thomas begins to realize that he might not be capable of caring for Charlie. Later at school, Thomas realizes that he'll have to learn to swim before he earns his lifesaving badge. Of course every student in class needs to have a partner, and it just so happens that Thomas' partner is a pretty fellow pupil named Jackie.

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