Forget it

Rating: Null/10 (31 October 2006)

Yesterday afternoon I was standing in front of the cinema. Basically, I had two choices for the 17:00h screenings. This one and Paul Verhoeven's ZWARTBOEK (which is developing into my nemesis, I still haven't seen it). I decided I wanted to go for a laugh and because of all the good publicity about LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE, I was confident it was gonna be a well spent two hours.
I was wrong. It's a total clunker. Within ten minutes the set-up with the little girl is clear. We've been introduced to all the members of a dysfunctional family and from there on, we have to cope with an endless string of jokes, ideas, and sight gags (Greg Kinnear on his moped on the freeway, the audience can laugh now) that have been done many times before in other films. There's not a single original idea in the entire movie. And the actors can't do anything about it really. The direction is one annoying close-up after another with overly cute music to underline our emotions, and how about a little probability? A 15-year old guy, who wants to be an airline pilot and never had any idea he was colour blind? Come on, please! And after he finds out, he explodes (I think he really did explode) in frustration and anger. How can you work with this as an actor?
Perhaps the whole thing is worth a peek after all for "The Little Miss Sunshine Beauty Contest" at Redondo Beach at the end of the film. It was the most gruesome freak show I have ever seen in my entire life. I still feel shivers down my spine when I think about it.
In the end there is some kind of muddled message: Winning is all about our inner selves. Do what you like best or have fun at it. Nobody is a loser when he's trying, and beauty is not about looks. Or something... This was already spelled out in the first ten minutes and I didn't think for a moment that they were gonna end with this one, but they did. What contempt for modern audiences. If this is where modern comedy is heading, we're in trouble. But half the world has seen this film already and clearly fell in love with it, so any resistance on my behalf seems futile.
I'm beginning to develop a certain hatred against all Sundance-endorsed indies.
Camera Obscura --- 3/10