Little Miss Sunshine

A quirky original comedy that works it's way towards a genuinely brilliant finale. Strong cast, sharp humour and good pacing contribute to a modern classic.

I am still shocked that this film wasn't nominated for direction at the Oscars and that it lost best picture to the overwrought The Departed. This is film captures far more of life as lived in single scenes than most films capture in their entire runtime. It is not just the great script that has great comedic bits and utterly real characters. It's not just the pitch perfect cast. This is a great *visual* film as well because of the traveling scenes and the quirky design sense.

The direction is extremely tight. Whether it is how the opening dinner sequence delineates character and their relationships-via clothing and seating arrangements-economically or how they kept the interior of the van visually fresh the film is filled with splendid and meaningful images. I think the script and the acting are so good that people just didn't notice the visual niceties the film captures. There's even a couple of hard jokes to land-i.e. Porn in the trunk-that the directors managed to make work far better than the story beat does on the page.

I think the film's theme around the cruelty of the rat race and the insane pressure we put on ourselves because of "competition" land better in 2022. Maybe I am just getting older but Richard is a bit of an jerk who did need to learn to chill. I like that the film isn't anti-competition per se but encourages us to keep things in perspective.

Most people have commented on the brilliance of the acting in this movie. I agree with all they said. Toni Collette, Greg Kinnear and Alan Arkin are as good as we would expect them to be. Add sensitive and characterful performances from Paul Dano & Steve Carell. Spotlight the amazing Abigail Breslin as a believable little girl trying to break into the Child Glamour Business through pageants like "Little Miss Sunshine." It was when I contrasted her less than movie-star appearance with all the adult-glam of the other lacquered and made-up girls that I realized the subliminal message here.

Olive's striptease is an honest (but disturbing) expose of what these pageants really are. It's only when Olive's family join her in making this into a game that we can begin cheering for her while being horrified by the hypocrisy of the whole pageant-thing.

A brilliant movie!

Here is a film that lives up to the expectations of a very funny trailer. It's an oddball comedy, and it's dark, and it's funny, and it's touching, and it will charm the pants off many in the audience. Here is a simple story in which our lovely contestant and her family try to find their way to California so that she can prove to the world she is not a loser! The premise itself can lead to years of therapy for a family that should get a group rate in psychiatric care.

Expert editing and superb comedic performances from all the principals involved will have many overlook the fact that the plot line is a little too contrived at times. The set pieces will have the audience howling with laughter as we see different characters trying to overcome some pretty irreverent obstacles. The scene at the gas station contains moments of deep sadness and offbeat humor, something that Carrell pulls off wonderfully, and none will be able to look at the trunk of a car, some dubious literary material, and highway patrol the same way after seeing the infamous scene in the film.

The best is of course, saved for last, and by this time we are waiting for something outrageous which "Little Miss Sunshine" delivers unapologetically. A classic track will probably be recharged for a new generation, as the bonds of family precariously balance a moment that could be as tacky as they come.

"Sunshine" is one of the best things to come out of American cinema this year, an original film that relies on a script that understands the differences between generations in the same family. It doesn't explain why each character is as quirky as can be, and it doesn't build much background because it is not needed to make the film work. Kinnear, Colette, Abigail, Arkin, and Correll are a fine team and keep the film's feel fresh throughout the film. Here is a family that has no special qualities or powers, a family that will make us rejoice that creativity is still alive in Hollywood, a film that will provide us with plenty of much needed sunshine in an otherwise pretty dull summer.

I saw Little Miss Sunshine a week ago at the Sydney Film Festival, and the audience I saw it with loved it. There was a lot of laughter going on - especially at the hilarious ending. And amidst the jokes it deals smartly with it's theme of the value of chasing your dreams and being one of life's 'winners' versus valuing what you already have. Or put another way, it celebrates the joys of losing in a culture obsessed with winning.

I'm not going to go into detail about the plot, as the film hasn't been widely released yet. There are no huge plots twists, but I think you'll have more fun with this film if you don't know exactly where it's going.

As the film started I wasn't so sure about it. All the characters (apart from Toni Colette's perhaps) seemed to be written as being amusingly quirky in a predictable indie-comedy way. But as the movie went on it became easier to warm to them. I think it helped that the actors appeared to be having genuine fun together. These guys don't feel like much of a family at first, and I wondered a couple of times why these people would bother sticking together, but as things progress the strengths of this particular family unit become obvious. And just as all comedies should, it gets funnier as it goes on. I was pleased to see the script stayed true to it's messages all the way to the end, and didn't turn preachy or maudlin. The whole cast work excellently together, and I hope this film has all the success it deserves once it's released.