Little Miss Sunshine is a film that I could watch over and over and never get bored. This film manages to do something that truly amazes me, it balances comedy and tragedy and comedy perfectly in such a way that depending on what day you watch it certain scenes will either have you in stitches or crying your eyes out.

A lot of this comes down to the performances, Carell, Kinnear and Collette are no stranger to comedy and get to show off their improve skills and comedic timing throughout however they take a more relaxed and nuanced approx so that the real heart of each scene is never lost.

This film also throws in a rather profound message about identity and self worth that a viewer may not see being set up on first viewing. Some moments have the capacity to hit you like a brick if you let them and can stick in your mind for days after.

The scene where Dwayne Discoverers that he is colour-blind is one of my favourite moments in cinema. Paul Dano’s completely unhinged performance matched with some great camera work are a big part of why this film has stuck with me for so long. This scene is a perfect example of how this film can have you laughing through your tears as the absurd nature of the moment never fully undercuts the raw emotion that the character is feeling.

Really this film is about laughing through your tears. Little Miss Sunshine tells us that it is okay to fail, it is okay not to be happy and it is okay not to fit the mould that society wants you too. It sets up what at first seem to be fairly generic character types and then exposes them to be complete three dimensional people. Much like how the film may appear to be a basic road trip comedy but is so much more.

"Fuck a lot of woman kid, I have no reason to lie, not just one. A lot of women."

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

Review:
Little Miss Sunshine is a 2006 dramatic comedy that delivers all around. With solid cast that includes Greg Kinnear, Toni Collette, Paul Dano, Abigail Breslin, Steve Carrell an oscar winning performance by Allan Arkin and Bryan Cranston and Dean Norris in Albuquerque pre Breaking Bad and a great script Little Miss Sunshine is a film that I missed when it first came out but glad I got around to it.

Kinnear is the loser husband to Collette's Sheryl and Carell is her gay suicidal brother. Dano plays her quiet son and Arkin the heroine addicted dirty Grampa. Breslin's character Olive qualifies for the Little Miss Sunshine competition and it's a race to beat the clock as the family takes a road trip from Albuquerque to California filled with unexpected surprises and personal revelations.

The films ending solidifies the families bond and leaves us wanting to see hopefully another chapter in the families life down the road. No Pun intended. Little Miss Sunshine is defiantly worth checking out if you have not already or just a rewatch as a reminder of how good it is.