This is a wonderful little story of how kids see the world but also the harsh realities of poverty in America.
As per the director, Sean Baker's previous, Tangerine, this also take a documentary style approach and all of the character display a reallness like no other.
This in some ways is totally unique but in other ways it can make for somewhat wasted minutes on dialogue that doesn't necessarily move the story along in any way.
Despite that - I think that is what Baker is going for here - a snapshot of a week or so in the life of families who are on the peripheral, people whose stories may not necessarily be told in regular Hollywood movies.
Acting - The actors really do a great job in drawing together the sense of frustrations, community, their reliance on one another for comfort and support and their desperate situations. The fact that this is some of these people, incl. the kids first film roles is pretty amazing and they seem totally natural in front of the camera. In some ways the kids are not necessarily acting but perhaps just being themselves (aside from the swearing, one hopes). It also shows how kidIt also displays the hopelesness of the cycle of poverty perhaps. As these kids have grown up in this situation, this is all they know and their life literally revolves around this small patch of tarmac in the few connected motels.
Seasoned actor William ** portrays a character with sensitivity that we are not accustomed to in his infamously menacing previous roles. He really displays the emotions of a man who cares about these families and looks out for the kids but also a man who is stuck in between his professional role as manager and his morals and care for the people at the motel. Ultimately he is as empathetic character as the others but one can't help but think they would be stuck without him and perhaps he isn't as appreciated as he should be by the residents.
The cinematography was wonderful - a great mix of bright and sickly colours which really drove home the idea of the falseness of Disneyland and ultimately the American Dream. It was a stark contrast to the reality which these kids and their parents found themselves in.
SPOILER *****
The Ending - Ok there has been a lot of controversy surrounding the ending due to the cinematography implemented. I saw it both ways. The end was building up to a climax and was really bringing a lot of emotions out of me upon watching it but once it reached that final Disney scene, with the running and chasing down the street to finally arrive at the magic kingdom, it felt a little rushed and due to change in format of cameras and such it felt a somewhat cheap ending to an otherwise cinematically spotless movie. I totally get what the director was going for but I just didn't like the way it was done. Despite this I feel it was definitely an appropriate ending - just deserved a little more from a cinematography perspective given the rest of the film.
I also thought that her mother's comments to the social services characters were really important because she was right in many ways. She really did care for her daughter and was doing what she could to make her kids life happy within the frame that she was capable of doing. She didn't really know how to be a good mother however she was trying and she loved her kid.
Overall I believe this film should and must be seen - it is brilliant, different, bold and electrifying in its cinematography and the performances therein - and the message is brave and brilliant. We can make of it what we will and it inspires much debate and thought. That's what makes this film deserving of a watch. After all that is what true cinema is all about - taking risks on important stories which would otherwise not be told.
This in some ways is totally unique but in other ways it can make for somewhat wasted minutes on dialogue that doesn't necessarily move the story along in any way.
Despite that - I think that is what Baker is going for here - a snapshot of a week or so in the life of families who are on the peripheral, people whose stories may not necessarily be told in regular Hollywood movies.
Acting - The actors really do a great job in drawing together the sense of frustrations, community, their reliance on one another for comfort and support and their desperate situations. The fact that this is some of these people, incl. the kids first film roles is pretty amazing and they seem totally natural in front of the camera. In some ways the kids are not necessarily acting but perhaps just being themselves (aside from the swearing, one hopes). It also shows how kidIt also displays the hopelesness of the cycle of poverty perhaps. As these kids have grown up in this situation, this is all they know and their life literally revolves around this small patch of tarmac in the few connected motels.
Seasoned actor William ** portrays a character with sensitivity that we are not accustomed to in his infamously menacing previous roles. He really displays the emotions of a man who cares about these families and looks out for the kids but also a man who is stuck in between his professional role as manager and his morals and care for the people at the motel. Ultimately he is as empathetic character as the others but one can't help but think they would be stuck without him and perhaps he isn't as appreciated as he should be by the residents.
The cinematography was wonderful - a great mix of bright and sickly colours which really drove home the idea of the falseness of Disneyland and ultimately the American Dream. It was a stark contrast to the reality which these kids and their parents found themselves in.
SPOILER *****
The Ending - Ok there has been a lot of controversy surrounding the ending due to the cinematography implemented. I saw it both ways. The end was building up to a climax and was really bringing a lot of emotions out of me upon watching it but once it reached that final Disney scene, with the running and chasing down the street to finally arrive at the magic kingdom, it felt a little rushed and due to change in format of cameras and such it felt a somewhat cheap ending to an otherwise cinematically spotless movie. I totally get what the director was going for but I just didn't like the way it was done. Despite this I feel it was definitely an appropriate ending - just deserved a little more from a cinematography perspective given the rest of the film.
I also thought that her mother's comments to the social services characters were really important because she was right in many ways. She really did care for her daughter and was doing what she could to make her kids life happy within the frame that she was capable of doing. She didn't really know how to be a good mother however she was trying and she loved her kid.
Overall I believe this film should and must be seen - it is brilliant, different, bold and electrifying in its cinematography and the performances therein - and the message is brave and brilliant. We can make of it what we will and it inspires much debate and thought. That's what makes this film deserving of a watch. After all that is what true cinema is all about - taking risks on important stories which would otherwise not be told.