CHESTER FILM SOCIETY eNEWSLETTER
30th March 2008

Our next film takes place on:
Tuesday 1st April
Little Theatre
7.45pm

Little Miss Sunshine

Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Faris/
USA/2006/95mins

It's a rare family road trip comedy that's consistently hilarious, engaging and resonant. An especially sharp cast, knowing direction and a biting script make this a must-see.

The Hoover family is a rat's nest of expectations and awkwardness. Richard (Kinnear) can't get anyone to notice his nine-step Refuse to Lose programme, while Sheryl (Collette) can't get her family to be honest with each other. Nietzsche-obsessed 15-year-old Dwayne (Dano) has taken a vow of silence until he escapes to the Air Force, and too-normal 7-year-old Olive (Breslin) is determined to win a beauty contest in Los Angeles. Add Richard's foul-mouthed dad (Arkin), evicted from his nursing home for using heroin, and Sheryl's Proust-scholar brother (Carell), recovering from a suicide attempt. It's a long drive to L.A.

There are a couple of contrived missteps in the story, but the film otherwise treats its quirky characters as real people. The opening dinner table sequence is a brilliant jumble of everyday humour and sarcasm tinged with uncomfortable silences and barely submerged misery. We quickly understand these people's desires and loathings, their private vices and deep-rooted affection, and the way they get on each others' nerves. In other words, it's a bracingly recognisable family.

The actors dive headlong into their roles. These are messy, obsessive people who know each other far too well. Collette holds the family together with a brilliantly detailed performance, while Kinnear plays to his strengths as a severely compromised good buy. Arkin has the scene-stealing foul-mouthed grandpa role, but avoids cliches at every turn. Carell plays effectively against type as a guy trying to rediscover the will to live. And both Dano and Breslin are simply perfect. Even the small side characters resonate.

Despite some corny plot turns, the film remains firmly grounded, finding humour in honest interaction and authentic personalities. We can identify with each person in the story--especially the way they all have dreams far bigger than they are. And directors Dayton and Faris mine the comedy and emotion in each scene without ever going for the obvious. Family comedies aimed at grown-ups just don't get better than this.

Rich Cline, Shadows on the Wall

Trivia

The movie took five years to make, mostly due to financial reasons.

Following its success at Sundance, Fox snapped up the distribution rights for $10.5million.

2 related planning applications have now been lodged for the Odeon building in Northgate Street.

Please see:

http://www.ukplanning.com/chester/search/index.htm

Then enter the following application numbers in the search box.

08/00175/LBC

08/00176/FUL

Now the applications are there for you to see. A number of objections have been lodged, mainly around the uncertainty around what the building is going to be used for. Because of Easter, the closing date has been pushed back to 1st April.

You can do your bit by visiting the planning application site and considering whether you would like to object as well. It only takes a minute to log an objection. Do you want a cinema in the centre of Chester?

Please visit http://www.chesterfilmfans.co.uk/mailing_list/news_080330.htm for an online version of this issue.