The Magic of Marciano (2000)

Dramatic tale of a young boy who prefers his outrageous imagination to the painful reality of his everyday life. Desperate to escape persecution at school and at home, young James wanders the docks of his picturesque coastal hometown until he befriends Henry, a retiree building a boat to sail around the world. One fateful night, when James is separated from his deeply troubled mother, Henry teaches him the greatest magic trick of all in how to live in the happy place found somewhere between fantasy and reality.