Heartwarming, awkward and oh so enjoyable

Rating: 10/10 (30 June 2008)

I have heard a lot about this film prior to watching it. I heard about how funny it is and how much recognition it got from critics and the community alike. I finally was able to watch Little Miss Sunshine and I was surely not disappointed.
The plot of the story involves a rather dysfunctional family. The father, Robert Hoover, is attempting to jump start his career through a motivational program. The mother, Sheryl, is a overworked mother that is trying to create a comfortable life for her kids. The grandpa, who got kicked out of his retirement home for snorting heroine. The uncle who recently attempted to commit suicide. Dwayne is the quiet teen son that has taken a vow of silence until he becomes a test pilot. Finally Olive, who is a little girl that got accepted to the Little Miss Sunshine pageant in California. The film is the family's journey to the pageant.
One of the strongest points of the film is the casting. I loved Alan Arkin, Abigail Breslin, Paul Dano and Steven Carrell in this film. Their acting is top notch and makes for some memorable and touching scenes which often come with a hint of dark comedy.
The aspect that keeps this film fresh and not a cliché meddled mess is the assiduous sense of innocence and awkwardness that is present on the screen. There is always a nice mix of both in the movie that it makes for some good laughs even when the topic being discussed is not something to be laughed about. This mixtures explodes in the pageant scenes at the end of the film. The pageant also provides a not-so-subtle comment about children in pageants as well The only thing that bothered me in this film is how insensitive and annoying some of the characters were. Despite the family going through many hardships during the trek from New Mexico to California, these mainly minor characters managed to irritate me to a annoying extent. I did not see a great point in adding these characters into the film.
The ending was very well done and finished off in the right place. The main thing I was happy to see about the ending was that it avoided clichés and ended on a very humorous and appropriate way.
Overall, this film will not disappoint you. If you are a fan of any of the actors/actresses, you will enjoy it. If you're a fan of dark comedy, yo will enjoy it. If you're into indie films, you will enjoy it. So sit back and let this crazy little family take you on a very quirky trip.