Friday's Child

Acting good and realistic almost doccie like film giving it a very realistic feel...but ohhhh so drawwwwn out!...I just wanted it to end before I aged out and turned the light's out!

I was in a trance for most of the run time. It nosedives a little bit in the end, tacking on a plot that was barely introduced before and making it the main point of the film, but I'll give it a pass because that's not what the film is about. It's an experience. I could not take my eyes off the screen for a second. Amazing work from everybody involved. Definitely watching this one again!

How can one of the least talked about films of the last couple of years - have such insanely good photography? It is truly beautiful. Frame after frame after frame - I couldn't look away. Anybody who is into cinematography should watch this movie, and you'll be dazzled.

The DoP is Jeff Bierman, who seems to have done a few music videos before this. The close ups, shots of nature, lateral camera movements, colour shcemes etc are breathtaking. It's like a Trey Shults movie photographed by Emmanuel Lubezki. That's not an exaggeration. It really is that well shot. Director AJ Edwards is another that has apparently worked with Mallick - and it really shows.

The cinematography is the best thing about the movie, which tells the story of an orphan trying to make a fresh start in life after being released from a care home. It's like the lovechild of Short Term 12 and American Honey with an indie crime movie element thrown in. Tye Sheridan is Tye Sheridan, and there are nice turns from Geoffrey Wright and Imogen Poots, but Caleb Landry Jones steals the show, so much so that I'm sure he's destined to be a huge star once he's given the right lead role. The guy can act.

The plot is a tad thin and somewhat predictable, which lets the movie down somewhat. The melodramatic 3rd act doesn't help. But the astounding cinematography bumps the rating back up again.

This is a small, independent movie. It is mostly set in Waco, Texas and mostly shot there. I recognized some of the areas from my several visits a few years back. They even have a scene of throwing tortillas off the Waco Suspension Bridge, a ritual most Baylor college students go through.

Texas native Tye Sheridan is the main character, Richie, an orphan who has banged around the foster system for most of his life. He is just turning 18 and as such will be emancipated. But how prepared is a barely educated 18-yr-old to jump right into adult life?

This story is about that difficulty and the eventual trouble he finds himself in. It is hard to find a real purpose for this movie other than to tell an interesting fictional story but one which may be close to reality for some in a similar situation.

My wife and I watched this at home on DVD from our public library, however she abandoned it when things got a bit weird in the middle of the movie.

I've had this movie on my watchlist for almost two years. I finally decided to give it a shot. Turned out to be ok I guess. It floats along and gets by but is boring most of the time. Very grey and drawn out. Just a little too slow for my taste. It was shot well and had some decent actors but it lacked a meaning. Just a sad story about a seemingly good kid that gets out of foster care and makes some very bad choices. 5 stars