Little Miss Sunshine on DVD–Don’t Go Another Day Without It

It’s said the definition of a dysfunctional family is a family with more than one member. In the newly released–on DVD–movie, Little Miss Sunshine, it takes six to incite the riot that will entertain, if not shake, your psyche to its core.

Brilliant directing causes squirmy discomfort from the start of the movie. The Hoover family exists in utter chaos. In the first few moments, the mother brings her suicidal brother home from the hospital to stay in her teenage son’s room. The son has taken a vow of silence and professes, on paper, to hate everyone. The father (Greg Kinnear) is a complete type A personality–high strung, uptight, inflexible, and argumentative. He multi-tasks by pacing and talking on the phone while snapping at his wife.

She’s throwing takeout chicken and Sprite, in mismatched Sesame Street glasses and plastic cups, at the family while continuously calling for the little girl and the grandfather to come to the table. The camera is in and out, up and down, and diagonal, intentionally creating a visually disharmonious atmosphere to coordinate with the discordant conversation. Right off the bat you want to get away from this family.

Enter the foul-mouthed grandfather (Alan Arkin) and Olive, the smallest family member (Abigail Breslin). These two are captivating, especially in their scenes together. Alan Arkin’s character is a scream right to the end. The little girl is so endearing and so funny. You can’t take your eyes or ears off either of them. And if you thought dinner with them made you uneasy, wait ’til you find out they’re taking a road trip together.

I don’t want to give any more away, but this is a great movie for anyone who deals with other people to any degree. With regular hilarity and non-stop opportunities to ponder human nature and study interpersonal relationships, it’s a very fun life lesson.

Little Miss Sunshine has won tons of acclaim at the Sundance Film Festival and would have to be headed for Oscarville. Greg Kinnear, always wonderful in my opinion, really displays his acting abilities in this one. You go from wanting to kill him to something very different (again, I don’t want to reveal too much) because of his terrific range.

If you don’t laugh at this movie, you need to file a missing personality report on your sense of humor. If you aren’t touched to the core at times, you need to see the wizard for a new heart. This is a great movie to rent over the holidays because it will make you appreciate your family members more. And it should make you look at your role in the mix.