Little Miss Sunshine

Little Miss Sunshine: A small independent film about a dysfunctional family brings a BIG breath of fresh air to theaters. The story seems basic at first glance – A family must drive cross country to get their 7 year old daughter to the “Little Miss Sunshine” beauty pageant. Enter the crazy characters that make up this family. This is one of the best cast ensembles I have ever seen. Each character is cast, written, and acted perfectly. 5 minutes into the film you have a hilarious dinner table scene which introduces us to each member of the family. The dad is played by Greg Kinnear, he is a motivational speaker. His brother-in-law played by Steve Carell, has to live with them because he is depressed and just tried to commit suicide. Rounding out the family is a son who does not speak, a grandpa who does drugs and says whatever is on his mind, a mother who is trying to make the family work and a daughter fixated on winning a beauty pageant. The laughs keep coming as the whole family jumps into a VW van to drive to California. The movie actually stays away from the typical “family traveling” humor and instead gets into some outrageous circumstances – most of which would be far-fetched if it were not for us believing in the characters so much. Indeed this was the funniest movie I have seen this year, but the whole time there was also this real, sad, and important message beaming across the screen. The film definitely works as a comedy, but it also works as an off-beat drama. As of today - August, 15 – it is the best movie I have seen this year!!!! Check it out!

* * * and ½

If this movie had Parents they would be: The Royal Tenenbaums & Vacation

With run time of 101 minutes
This film is rated R