Screenwriter: Michael Arndt
Having a bad day? Bad week? Watch Little Miss Sunshine. I guarantee you’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll cheer for what has become one of my favorite movies of 2006. (And if you’re having a bad year – already – well, I suggest you call off work and watch it twice.)
Little Olive (Abigail Breslin, who played Mel Gibson’s daughter in Signs) caught the beauty pageant bug while visiting her out-of-town cousins. Now she dreams of taking that famous stroll down “runway lane” as a beauty pageant queen. As luck would have it, the winner of the regional pageant Olive participated in had to forfeit. As runner-up, Olive gets the chance to compete in the state competition.
Olive and her out-of-sync family – comprised of her motivational speaker father, Richard (Greg Kinnear); frazzled but supportive mom, Sheryl (Toni Collette); mute-by-choice brother, Dwayne (Paul Dano); suicidal, homosexual uncle, Frank (Steve Carell); and out-spoken paternal Grandpa (the one and only Alan Arkin), who also happens to be her choreographer – travel in their VW van to help Olive fulfill her dream and end up getting to know each other a little better in the process.
What I liked: Every single minute of this award-winning film! The acting is outstanding, the writing is believable and brilliant, and the story is simple yet highly enjoyable.
What I didn’t: Not a darn thing.
Madeleine says: Add it to your collection
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