Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

Brilliant and just about flawless

This movie is absolute perfection. There is nothing I don't like about it. I laughed, I cried. This is one of those movies that everyone needs to see. It is filled with characters that are brilliantly acted and quickly become people we know. It moves swiftly and powerfully from comedy to drama and back again.

If this film doesn't touch your heart, you need to check to be sure you're still breathing. July 1, 2008

quirky

Little Miss Sunshine is about a family trying to get the youngest daughter across country to compete in the "Little Miss Sunshine" pageant. There's the dad (Greg Kinnear), who's a motivational speaker and author of a self-help book he's trying to sell; there's the gay uncle (Steve Carell), just out of the hospital after trying to kill himself; there's the teenage son (Paul Dano) who's taken a vow of silence; there's the grandfather (Alan Arkin) who's been kicked out of the retirement community; there's the daughter (Abigail Breslin) who's not quite like the other pageant contestants; and the mom (Toni Collette) who tries to hold them all together.

The trip tears them all apart and puts them back together, as a family.

If the characters were less quirky, the story would be too heartwarming for words, and would require a warning from dentists. But as it is, they're understandable and sympathetic in their quirkiness, and because they're exaggerated, it's easy to see parts of them in your own life, whether in yourself or those around you, making the movie very thought-provoking.

Little Miss Sunshine is described as a comedy, but I don't see that. There are funny parts, yes, but the story is too tragic to be a comedy, I think. June 29, 2008

Sunny Olive.

Little Miss Sunshine starring Greg Kinnear and Toni Collette is the cutest and zaniest film of 2006. This film was nominated for best picture and Alan Arkin won best supporting actor, I was worried this film would be a disappointment but I was pleasantly surprised. I enjoyed this quirky flick from beginning to end. Abigail Breslin (also nominated) is ray of sunshine as a beauty pageant hopeful Olive Hoover, she is plain, chubby, and less than graceful but she has tremendous heart. Breslin's performance is pretty amazing for someone so young, and jeez she's been in like a thousand films after this one made her famous. Paul Dano and Steve Carell also star and probably have the best character layout in this film. I highly recommend this much-beloved gem! Enjoy! June 25, 2008

Portrait of a quirky, loyal American family.

Here they come now. One is wearing a 'Jesus was wrong' t-shirt while his eyes burn with hatred for everything around him, another is a suicidal scholar who is still getting over a failed relationship, and their leader: a self-help guru who just can't seem to help himself. These are some of the faces that make up the Hoover clan as they attempt to get their yellow van moving back down the highway by first pushing it. Their destination is the Little Miss Sunshine competition in Redondo Beach, California.

Olive, the young, slightly overweight daughter of the Hoovers who has earned a spot in the competition, is the principle character here. She seems to be the force that brings this eclectic family unit together, and it is through her that all the members of the Hoover family find commonality and loyalty toward once another.

Perhaps the wittiest film of 2006, Little Miss Sunshine is at times vulgar and will make you squirm a bit, but the subject matter is all about the fine trimmings of family and the message is clear during the last, nutty segments of the film, "Family is family, and you've only got one, so get over your differences and DANCE, baby!"

June 20, 2008

Sunshine Without The Burn

What a laugh riot! This is the children's beauty pageant you always wanted to see. There are scenes in this movie that will stick in my memory providing residual laughter long down the line.

Most movies have a very predictable storyline, progression and outcome. But this film is delightfully surprising from the very beginning.

Alan Arkin is a treasure, and it is obvious how much fun he had playing this role. Arkin is a seasoned, veteran actor who has played many roles in his career, however I will always think of him as the porno addicted Grandpa.

Gregg Kinnear is unbelievably funny just by playing it straight: a "failure" trying to sell a success program. He brilliantly portrays a person who does not want to grow, and yet does, in bits and pieces, because he has no other choice.

Any film that Steve Carell is in is worth watching. He has such a quiet way of embodying the characters he portrays. Every time I witness a group of people pushing a broken-down vehicle down the road, I will remember how hard he made me laugh in this film.

If you want a guaranteed laugh out loud movie that will pick up your Spirits and brighten your day, this is a must. June 15, 2008

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