2006's Napoleon Dynamite!!!

Rating: 8/10 (21 January 2007)

LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE 2006 (TONI COLLETE, GREG KINNEAR, STEVE CARELL) DIRECTED BY: JONATHAN DAYTON & VALERIE FARIS ~ THE RUNDOWN: 'Little Miss Sunshine' is possibly the year's funniest film; a highly entertaining social commentary of originality and realism made with care. ~ When it comes to quirkiness and unintentional laughter it doesn't quite pack the wallop of Napoleon Dynamite, and even though the movie's funny in a satirical, realistic way instead of being goofy, it is comparable due to the pure originality and style of it in an increasingly formulaic genre plagued with clichés and stupidity. Also, it's really well shot and visually appealing. ~ It's true that people love to laugh at themselves; the best humor comes from simply observing ourselves, our families, our friends and the situations of the world that we live in. And, that's what 'Sunshine' does; as this family embarks on a troubled journey to help a family member take on her dreams it acts as a mirror that, through dialog, emotions, and comical situations, realistically reflects the silliness of our lives and the so-called horrors that haunt us on our road to death. Of course, 'Little Miss Sunshine' is indeed a little on the unlikely side at times and does side with conventionality quite a bit to get the necessary laughs, which isn't a bad thing because there's no reason to rely on quirkiness alone when you have brilliant acting and ingenious writing at your disposal. However, the only real negative aspect of the movie that comes to mind is the fact that it really is too depressing at times; this is after all a comedy, and its dramatics interfere too often with the film. ~ There's no doubt about it - this is a special movie...the type of movie that only comes around once a year on average, and is the type of the movie that when you see it, you know you're watching something unusually good. Overall, it's definitely worth a watch, and depending on who you are, it'll be worth many more.