While it's true that we've reviewed "Little Miss Sunshine" here on LAist earlier this summer, to be honest, we didn't really trust our writer. She was new, she was impressionable, she's young... when she raved about how great the film was we just thought she was jumping on the 93% bandwagon. So we went to the Arclight this afternoon to see if the low-budget independent could live up to the hype.
Ladies and gentlemen, the film lives up to the hype. From pretty much the first scene either you're in or you're out with this totally dysfunctional and exceptionally funny family. The writing and directing is so good that we're fearing a tv adaptation, because when the movie is over you want to stay and hang out with them longer.
"Little Miss Sunshine" isn't about an adorable lass, it's about not being a loser and once you realize you're a loser, learning how to accept it and partying with it, which of course makes you a winner. We learn that there's no such thing called "cutting and running", there are only experiences where the only losers are the ones who don't try.
This film succeeds because the dialogue is smart and quick, the storylines are believable and touching, and the humor is biting and adult. There are no flaws in this film. It should be the blueprint for Hollywood who, although their box office receipts are up from last year, has nothing to get giddy about since last year was such a stinker.
We'll put it this way: if more people were making movies like "Little Miss Sunshine", with energies spent on writing and developing sharp, smart, strong characters instead of special effects and bloated budgets, Hollywood would be rolling in the dough, and far more people would go to the movies more often.
