Little Miss Sunshine (B+ or 3.5/4 stars)
Pageant lovers take notice. The gist of 'Little Miss Sunshine, an indie flick directed by newcomers, Jonathon Dayton & Valeries Faris is as follows: Olive Hoover (an adorable Abigail Breslin) is a 7 yr. old Albuquerquean who is ecstatic to find out that she will compete in the Little Miss Sunshine pageant in Redondo Beach, California. Olive is neither slim, nor a classic beauty (a la all the 'Jon Benets'), but she is smart, infectious and endearing. In order to get to this pageant, her entire dysfunctional family must pile in to their VW bus & make it there in one piece, literally. The movie is funny, sad, light, dark, & charming, much like Olive, herself. She is head strong enough to prove to herself, not her family, that she is a winner!
Her dad is at the wheel (Greg Kinnear). He's a quasi-loser/self-help guru who is desperately trying to get his '9 steps to being a winner' program legitimized. I love this portrayal because he seems like a very typical American dad. The way he dresses, speaks, & acts seems genuine and familiar. The vehicle he drives is a character in & of itself. It's glaringly yellow, & constantly failing to kick into gear. And when a horn malfunction trips them up on the highway, all you can do is laugh uncontrollably at this family's luck. Olive's mousy mom (Toni Collette) is your typical housewife who is more aware of her dysfunctional family than everyone else. Dwayne (Paul Dano) is her troubled step-brother. He has declared a vow of silence upon his family (he hates them more than anything else in the world).
Frank (a hysterical Steve Carrell) is Sheryl's (Collette) brother. He has recently joined the household after trying to commit suicide when his gay lover left him for another colleague. His story is quite sad, so we feel for him. But we also cheer for him in the moments when 'he' cheers up. Last but not least, Grandpa (Alan Arkin, so good) is also along for this ride (with interludes of snorting Heroin along the way). He's been a great friend and counsel to young Olive throughout her pursuit of pageant titles. His piss-&-vinegar attitude and vocabulary is a pure joy to behold.
The culmination of this movie is the Little Miss Sunshine pageant, itself; what a visceral display for us to see. Olive's family begins to realize that her dream of winning may be stunted. Olive has to dig deep within this silly competition. She needs to find herself as a way of growing up and believing in herself. Her realization of this life lesson, combined with her family's reactions to this maturation process is light & endearing. View the movie and see what I mean. Everything from the contestants to the talent acts are horrifying, comical, & sweet; all at the same time.
What's so great to watch is that just when you think this simple story about a family getting from point A to point B turns macabre ... the humor kicks in and you are rejuvenated instantly. Death, suicide, loneliness, despair, & disappointments ... are not traits that you would find in a comedy. And yet, each aspect of life is dealt with in a very casual, but funny manner. It's a quirky little indie film that won over my heart. Did it become stale in places? Sure. But as previously mentioned, right when my conscience began to drift, the movie would pick me up, inspire me, & give me some unexpected bursts of laughter along the way. I needed a film like this as an interlude between the highly disappointing summer and the greatness that is expected of the fall season line-up at movie theaters near you.
Her dad is at the wheel (Greg Kinnear). He's a quasi-loser/self-help guru who is desperately trying to get his '9 steps to being a winner' program legitimized. I love this portrayal because he seems like a very typical American dad. The way he dresses, speaks, & acts seems genuine and familiar. The vehicle he drives is a character in & of itself. It's glaringly yellow, & constantly failing to kick into gear. And when a horn malfunction trips them up on the highway, all you can do is laugh uncontrollably at this family's luck. Olive's mousy mom (Toni Collette) is your typical housewife who is more aware of her dysfunctional family than everyone else. Dwayne (Paul Dano) is her troubled step-brother. He has declared a vow of silence upon his family (he hates them more than anything else in the world).
Frank (a hysterical Steve Carrell) is Sheryl's (Collette) brother. He has recently joined the household after trying to commit suicide when his gay lover left him for another colleague. His story is quite sad, so we feel for him. But we also cheer for him in the moments when 'he' cheers up. Last but not least, Grandpa (Alan Arkin, so good) is also along for this ride (with interludes of snorting Heroin along the way). He's been a great friend and counsel to young Olive throughout her pursuit of pageant titles. His piss-&-vinegar attitude and vocabulary is a pure joy to behold.
The culmination of this movie is the Little Miss Sunshine pageant, itself; what a visceral display for us to see. Olive's family begins to realize that her dream of winning may be stunted. Olive has to dig deep within this silly competition. She needs to find herself as a way of growing up and believing in herself. Her realization of this life lesson, combined with her family's reactions to this maturation process is light & endearing. View the movie and see what I mean. Everything from the contestants to the talent acts are horrifying, comical, & sweet; all at the same time.
What's so great to watch is that just when you think this simple story about a family getting from point A to point B turns macabre ... the humor kicks in and you are rejuvenated instantly. Death, suicide, loneliness, despair, & disappointments ... are not traits that you would find in a comedy. And yet, each aspect of life is dealt with in a very casual, but funny manner. It's a quirky little indie film that won over my heart. Did it become stale in places? Sure. But as previously mentioned, right when my conscience began to drift, the movie would pick me up, inspire me, & give me some unexpected bursts of laughter along the way. I needed a film like this as an interlude between the highly disappointing summer and the greatness that is expected of the fall season line-up at movie theaters near you.