The sun shines on this movie

Rating: 8/10 (1 November 2006)

The last several years have seen some remarkably fine small or ensemble family-oriented films come out of independent American filmmakers, very different from the big-production values of typical Hollywood films. The ethos of these films clearly owes something to independent films from other countries, yet the results have been quintessentially American - we being the home of the Simpsons, the road trip, and the very-underage beauty pageant.
Such is Little Miss Sunshine, a charmer of a film that will sneak up on you, then whack you over the head with its screamingly funny and perceptive take on the dysfunctional (but aren't we all?) family of Olive Hoover. Dayton, Faris, and Arndt work their way into certain clichéd situations and characters, but then wriggle them in unexpected ways, always keeping the audience guessing. The ultimate goal - the Little Miss Sunshine beauty contest - is almost beside the point. What happens on the way is the real meat of this film, with memorable characters and moments. And the beauty pageant at the end is just the set-up for the movie's hysterical final scenes, the ultimate comment on what little girls are made of. You'll have to thank the late Rick James and JonBenét Ramsey for this wicked piece of satire.