Little Miss Sunshine

Directors: Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Faris
Screenwriter: Michael Arndt
Starring: Steve Carrell, Toni Collette, Greg Kinnear, Paul Dano, Alan Arkin, Abigail Breslin
Running time: 100 mins
Certificate: 15

Little Miss Sunshine follows the Hoover family as they travel cross-country in their beaten-up VW from New Mexico to Modesto, California for 7-year-old Olive to participate in the eponymous beauty pageant.

Greg Kinner plays Richard, the ambitious head of family who's convinced that there are only winners and losers in this world and tries at every opportunity to impress upon his offspring which they must be. His attitude, along with the support of mother Sheryl (Collette) and a heroin-snorting grandfather (Arkin) sets the family, also including suicidal Uncle Frank (Carrell) and taciturn teen Dwayne (Dano), on the road to Olive's (Breslin) questionable dream.

Although it began its life as an out and out comedy, in its finished form Little Miss Sunshine is an emotional journey and an impressive feature debut from music video helmers Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris. After getting off to a fairly straight-faced start, Michael Arndt's screenplay conveys clear messages and values about ambition, self-respect as well as the delectable institution that is the children's beauty pageant.

The performances from all are spot on and quirky, with Carrell giving one of his subtler heartfelt portrayals, and Kinnear does well to show the realisation of the fallacy in the winner/loser dichotomy which his culture has impressed upon him.

With a premise that could have appealed to those younger than its certificate would allow, drug-taking grandfathers, swearing and lewd children's beauty pageant performances serve to bump it up to a 15. However, at its heart this is a film about familial solidarity and the dangers of doggedly chasing dreams which gives it an emotional weight heavier than the familiar road movie would suggest.

Using a combination of slapstick and satire to convey its message, Little Miss Sunshine is one of the most worthy comedies to appear this year.





Interviews with the cast: Toni Collette, Greg Kinnear and Alan Arkin