Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

Directors:

Jonathan Dayton
Valerie Faris

Writer (WGA):

Michael Arndt (written by)

Release Date:

18 August 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

Where's Olive?

Plot:

A family determined to get their young daughter into the finals of a beauty pageant take a cross-country trip in their VW bus.

Plot Keywords:

Pride | Friedrich Nietzsche | Heroin | Hospital Waiting Room | Proust

Awards:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 41 wins & 46 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Sun. May 25	1:05 AM	HBO
Fri. May 30	1:30 AM	HBO

Cast

Abigail Breslin	...	Olive Hoover
Greg Kinnear	...	Richard Hoover
Paul Dano	...	Dwayne
Alan Arkin	...	Grandpa Edwin Hoover
Toni Collette	...	Sheryl Hoover
Steve Carell	...	Frank Ginsberg
Marc Turtletaub	...	Doctor #1
Jill Talley	...	Cindy
Brenda Canela	...	Diner Waitress
Julio Oscar Mechoso	...	Mechanic
Chuck Loring	...	Convenience Store Proprietor
Justin Shilton	...	Josh
Gordon Thomson	...	Larry Sugarman
Steven Christopher Parker	...	Teen Boy #1
Bryan Cranston	...	Stan Grossman

MPAA:

Rated R for language, some sex and drug content.

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Philippines:R-13 | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | South Korea:15 | Netherlands:12 | Ireland:15A | Canada:14A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Ontario) | Argentina:13 | Malaysia:U (DVD) | Brazil:14 | Australia:M | New Zealand:R13 | Hong Kong:IIB | Japan:PG-12 | Singapore:NC-16 | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | USA:R (certificate #42333) | Italy:T | Sweden:7 | Canada:G (Quebec) | Portugal:M/12 | Finland:K-11 | UK:15 | Chile:TE | Germany:6

Filming Locations:

Chandler, Arizona, USA

Company:

Big Beach Films

Trivia:

Contrary to popular belief, Frank's last name is not Greenberg. The released script revealed his last name to be Ginsberg.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the scene before Olive goes on to do her routine at the Little Miss Sunshine Pageant, her headband changes position several times from when she puts the hat on to when she takes it off.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Richard: There are two kinds of people in this world, winners and losers.

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in 2007 MTV Movie Awards (2007) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Til the End of Time

Probably the best comedy of 2006.

Comedies about families usually come in one of two genres. Often featuring dysfunctional families (are those two words redundant?), they are either broad and goofy ("Cheaper by the Dozen") or dark and abstruse ("The Royal Tenenbaums"). Driving its Volkswagon bus down the middle of these two extremes is "Little Miss Sunshine", a comedy both inclusive and exclusive, one that some will get entirely, while others will whiff on to the same degree.

The title stems from a beauty pageant in which seven-year old Olive (Abigail Breslin of "Signs") competes. For a good portion of the film, the contest serves as a MacGuffin of sorts, putting an already odd mix of family members on the road in bizarre situations that call Vegas Vacation to mind.

But "Sunshine" is far more than the slapstick of "Vacation". It mixes humor both broad and subtle humor into a strange brew of comedy, poignancy, lessons, and life. Huge and deep issues are addressed, topics like death, dreams, and failure. Yet somehow the movie doesn't feel heavy. You'll walk out with a smile on your face because the movie sensibly touches on these issues, realizing that stuff happens and life continues, that the handling of adversity is often what defines people. And above all, there is family, which you're stuck with, for better and worse.

"Sunshine" may not grab you right away, which is part of its power. It burns slowly, introducing the family members to the viewing outsiders through observation, then putting the viewers in the bus with them as they enter a foreign world. All this is done without lapsing into melodrama and without losing steam as the movie chugs toward the climactic final scene, continuously building momentum along the way, before promptly getting out on top.

Rather crude at times, "Sunshine" is not a movie for children, nor is it for anyone who takes life or movies too seriously. But if you excel at finding the askance humor in life and film, then you will relish this offbeat look at a collection of family dynamics perhaps only slightly stranger than most, although definitely more extreme.

Bottom Line: One of the year's best, and likely its best comedy. 8 of 10.