Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

	Directed by: Jonathan Dayton Valerie Faris	COUNTRY USA GENRE Drama/Comedy NORWEGIAN TITLE Little Miss Sunshine RUNNING TIME 101 minutes
	Produced by: Albert Berger David T. Friendly Peter Saraf Marc Turtletaub Ron Yerxa
	Written by: Michael Arndt

Cast includes:
CHARACTER	ACTOR/ACTRESS	RATING
Olive	Abigail Breslin	½
Richard	Greg Kinnear	½
Dwayne	Paul Dano
Grandpa	Alan Arkin
Sheryl	Toni Collette
Frank	Steve Carell

Review

It has a simple story, but a refreshing tone and nature, representing a breath of fresh air for a movie industry and a society arguably saturated with superficial values and an impeding political correctness. It may not exactly be innovative filmmaking, but Little Miss Sunshine is a purifying little picture that may just give its viewers a nudge in the right direction.

Although Little Miss Sunshine is satirical, it doesn't use the object of its satire to pull itself up. This is not a cynical film – it doesn't take itself that seriously. The explicit message is simple and familiar, inviting us to free ourselves from exclusively focusing on exteriors, yet doing so without crushing those childhood princess dreams. This is one of the film's most remarkable comments. No one is judging little Olive for wanting to be beautiful and wanting to win, and yet her family is determined that she stay true to herself.

Michael Arndt's effervescent script has an uncorrupted feel-goodness that is harder to achieve than one might think. It drives the film forward, carried by its crisp dialogue and good old situational comedy. Sure, the film deploys the traditional road movie formula and isn't free of a formulaic climax and ending, but the perceptive direction by the pairing of Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris makes it all work. Their refreshing approach makes us believe that there might be some sane people left after all, both in the world at large and in the United States in particular.

The performances in Little Miss Sunshine prove that an ensemble cast can collectively elevate each other. The title role is brilliantly inhabited by a rare talent named Abigail Breslin. She goes deeper in her role than child performers normally do. I also liked Alan Arkin's emancipated grandpa, though the best performance here belongs to Greg Kinnear. Taking us through all his struggles, revealing his flawed but good heart, Kinnear embodies a patriarch through ups and downs and delivers his best performance since As Good As It Gets.

There's nothing revolutionary about Little Miss Sunshine, but it's the type of film that is simply good for your sanity. If you've had enough of fast-paced, money-driven rehashes, Little Miss Sunshine might be a truly uplifting experience. It's the kind of feel-good film that doesn't have to exploit sentimentality to get a response from you.