I finally got around to viewing LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE this past weekend and I'm sorry I did not see this film sooner than I did. I was completely smitten with it. It was right up my alley with a good mix of emotional depth, humor, & quirkiness. The film follows the Hoover family as they trek from New Mexico to California so that the youngest of the Hoover's, Olive, can compete in the Little Miss Sunshine pageant. Actually, its about so much more than that, but you'll have to rent the film to find out.One moment that really stood out to me is when lovable & innocent Olive is backstage at the pageant getting ready to go on stage. She has seen all of the other competition, a collection of dolled-up, hair sprayed & airbrushed 7 year olds. They looked like miniature supermodels......in a bad way. It was grotesquely fake. Olive is looking at herself in the mirror and sizing up her body, comparing hers to the other girls after only being exposed to the whole situation for a short period of time. The scene was a subtle & brief commentary of what society (us) and the media are doing to the young ladies of this world.
I think I loved this film because we get to witness this dysfunctional family come together and realize that, despite of the flaws that they each have, there is a love binds them to each other. They trudge through the crud and unite to reach a goal. It made me think of me and my family. I am flawed in so many ways. On numerous occasions I felt as if I have failed members of my family in one way or another, yet they still love me. They want to bring out the best in me. Too many times I have been floored and humbled when one of my children say to me, "Dad? You know what? You're the best Dad anyone could ever have!" Come again? Really? Its moments like that that inspire me to rise above my own critical self-evaluation and be the best person I can be for my family.
Each of the actors gave a fine performance. It was good to see Steve Carell play a more understated role and Alan Arkin was great as usual. I'm glad he got the Oscar for his performance. It was a good rental, although I wish I had seen this in the theaters.
2 comments:
Hey Tony, I'm so happy that you saw this one finally. I knew you would love it from the get-go. I agree that Arkin was amazing. I was dancin' when he bet Eddie from "Dreamgirls" for this great role of his. "Little Miss Sunshine" made me laugh so much. On a side note, thanks for the kind words you said about my recent poem, "Easter Birds" on my blog. I really appreciated it. Sincerely, Doah
Hey Tony - thanks for the comment and the link. You have a really cool site too. I was looking at your profile and it seems like we dig a lot of the same things. I'm a huge Ben Folds fan. I also loved Garden State, Eternal Sunshine and Fight Club. I'll hold things down here in Atlanta...sounds like you have the Land of 1000 lakes on lockdown :-)
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