Little Boy

Ya know, I pride myself as a macho strong, independent man, I don't have a pick up truck nor have I engaged in caber tossing like they do in that Scottish athletic games, but I don't easily cry while watching a film, no matter how sentimental it can get. The last time I shed tears was when watching "Armageddon" the scene in which Bruce Willis said goodbye to his daughter played by Liv Tyler. But my holy freakin' goodness, LITTLE BOY had me literally crying like four times at the screening, four times, man! And ya know what, I didn't regret it at all. This is a very powerful, inspiring, can-do film, led by child star, Jakob Salvati whose talent is bigger than his appearance.

From co-writer/director Alejandro Monteverde, LITTLE BOY is about an 8-year old boy, Jakob's character, Pepper who believes that he has what it takes to bring his father home from WWII alive. He and his father are really close, so when his father (Michael Rapaport) leaves for war in place of his oldest son, it sets off events in that family, in that community, in that small town that will get them all learning about tolerance, faith, and love. Jakob is given a task by the local priest (Tom Wilkinson) and this list of assignments are supposed to help bring his father back, one of them is for Pepper to befriend the only Japanese resident, Hashimoto (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa), it's an uphill task for Pepper seeing that his older brother and the whole town are blaming Hashimoto for the war.

Christian community might see this film as something that they can encourage their members to go to theaters and see with their families and I think they should, but LITTLE BOY is not a Christian film. It also wrestles with the idea of believing in one self, one's will power. But what's great about this film is that it doesn't take sides, it only goes to show that many people hold different beliefs, doesn't always mean that some are more right than others. This child actor, Jakob, blew me away. He's so effortless, you feel his pain and agony, Jakob makes it so easy for us to feel sad for Pepper, makes us want him to be a better kid each day. If you're looking for a good cry, LITTLE BOY is the prefect movie for you, it's a tear jerker but not in a sense that it alienates certain audiences, because anybody who's dealt with loss or separation, anybody who doubts the idea of a mountain-moving faith, can relate to LITTLE BOY.

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Little Boy is a poignant movie which gripped me from beginning to end as I followed this child's journey to bring his father home from the war. He displays a faith and determination only a child can have and what makes it believable is that the movie does a great job in establishing the little boy's love for his father, who is his best friend, as his driving force. Jakob Salvati, who plays the little boy, Pepper, delivers a brilliant performance. The movie dealt with issues relevant to the time in a sensitive yet satisfying manner. It made me laugh, cry, and challenged me. With Hollywood delivering so many unsatisfying movies, this is a must see. I have already viewed this twice and will likely see it again. Don't miss this heartwarming story.

I was captivated by the acting, as well as the cinematography and special effects contained on this great production. I'm glad to see that the filmmakers and actors are bringing this kind of messages to the world through art reminding us that love is the force that brings us all together and that's the path to follow as humanity. I loved Eduardo Verástegui's performance by showing Little Boy the importance of faith. It made me think about how we must have the strength to defend the truth even when some people don't see it. It also made me remember that if we have the courage to go the right way and follow our goals or dreams, based on good intentions, God will give us what we need to get trough difficulties. Not only is it a very entertaining movie with a deep emotional content, but it is also an example of kindness and compassion, great job on bringing all together. The film made me cry, laugh and feel identified at some point with the characters. It takes you on an exciting emotional roller coaster with a beautiful message at the end that will take your breath away.

LITTLE BOY is a decent film that I didn't know was a faith-based endeavor until people started complaining about it. Having watched and reviewed Christian films in the past (THE RELIANT, LEFT BEHIND, and THE SHACK come immediately to mind), films that objectively weren't very good, this movie didn't strike me as being a part of that milieu. It may or may not be, but it is certainly a cut above the others in terms of acting, writing, and production values. If its intent is overtly evangelical, the filmmakers did a good job of making it palatable -- and of offering a strong example of what faith films should aspire to if their real intent is outreach rather than preaching to the choir.

Nevertheless, LITTLE BOY is at the very least perceived as a Christian film, and that means it's open season for derisive and cynical critique. For example, some smugly insist, without citing any specifics, that LITTLE BOY is "historically inaccurate." Let's unpack that.

Pearl Harbor was bombed in a surprise attack on December 7, 1941 (coincidentally 81 years ago today) and, as a result, we fought a war against the Japanese in the Pacific. That's straight-up real.

Intrinsic to LITTLE BOY's plot is the notion that innocent Japanese-Americans were mistreated, stolen from, and forced into internment camps before being released penniless and without apology near the end of the War. Yes, that happened.

When these innocent Japanese-Americans were finally freed, they were hated, discriminated against, and outright abused based on the fact that they had the "face of the enemy." Check.

(The book Infamy, by Richard Reeves, covers Japanese-American internment in significant detail. I recommend it.)

In early August of 1945, we used an atomic bomb -- two of them in fact -- in Japan, and one was nicknamed Little Boy. Two cities with which we all are familiar were obliterated. Incontrovertibly true.

Americans were held as prisoners of war in the Pacific theater. Some died and some came home. Most, if not all, were brutalized. Um, yeppers.

That's literally the full extent of the history that's even touched upon in this movie, and none of it is false. Should there have been more? Should the reasons why all these things happened have been addressed? Should events have been better contextualized? Maybe, but that would have made for a very, very long and very different film.

Instead, this movie maintains its focus on the story of an American boy of the era and, as such, doesn't dwell too much on the morality, or lack thereof, of the War in the Pacific and its belligerents. Rather, it spends its time contemplating matters at home and matters of personal integrity, exploring the concept that we should treat all people with kindness and judge all as human beings based on their individual merits. Cries that this is a racist film based on the depiction of things that really happened simply don't hold up. Cries that this must be a racist film because it's connected to Christianity are even dumber and reveal more about the complainant than about the film itself.

Where LITTLE BOY fails, to the extent that it fails at all, is in its simplistic vision of a very complicated world in which faith usually doesn't move mountains but, instead, helps us to climb over them, and sometimes even then with great difficulty. Had the filmmakers resisted the urge to offer up a traditional happy ending with smiles and hugs and happy tears all around, it would have been better for the overall effort. A smidgen more imagination and, dare I say it, inspiration might have led to an uplifting ending that didn't undermine everything that preceded it.

Without doubt, LITTLE BOY sports themes rooted in faith, but that's not all there is to it. As a work of cinema, it's so much more. Still, if all viewers can bring to the party is an abiding hostility toward God, religion, and the devout, they'll miss all the good stuff, reaching instead for criticisms poisoned by ideology and not informed by what's actually presented. And that's really a shame.

Finally a movie that you can take the kids to where both the parents and children love,love,love the film. This is a well filmed beautifully acting movie with a message that can change our world for good.It will make you laugh, cry, applaud, be inspired, dream, pray, and feel good about life after viewing it. The little boy does an incredible job acting along with the rest of the cast. David Henrie definitely has a movie acting career in his future after an award winning performance. It was refreshing to see Kevin James in a different more serious role even though he still had the audience laughing! This is how movies should be made for families and anyone else wanting a clean, uplifting film that everyone from all ages can enjoy! This is one movie you don't want to miss especially while it is in theaters as the sound effects and tract are amazing as well!