Little Miss Sunshine

This is the kind of classic inconspicuous film where interesting actors come together to play even more fascinating roles. Especially Steve Carell fascinates me in similar roles. It's entertaining, it's playful, at times it's crazy, sometimes hard to believe, but together it forms a great whole. And yet, it's actually "just" a road movie. A beautiful example of how something beautiful can have a very diverse form. (04/01/2014)

A hilariously bitter film with lots of funny moments and neatly intertwined fates of all kinds. Perhaps only the color blindness seemed to me too grafted on and as if unnaturally sticking out of the otherwise beautifully flowing story of one "normally strange" family. Of the cast, I want to praise the amazing Steve Carell and the diminutive Abigail Breslin the most, but the truth is that none of them were bad. (04/14/2015)

A great mixture of comedy and drama about a very quirky family. The dad comes across as a real jerk, Peggy Bundy is an excellent cook compared to the mom, the grandpa is a heroin addict, the uncle a suicidal homosexual, and the kids follow their peculiar dreams. Against all odds, this near-dysfunctional family is brought together as they take chubby little Olive to a beauty pageant. I enjoyed the trip to California, Grandpa's awesome one-liners were the highlight of the car conversations, and even "mute" Dwayne was great. It was just becoming increasingly obvious what Olive's talent performance would be like. I found the beauty pageant itself a little baffling, suddenly there were all these little Terminators everywhere and I was surprised to find Olivia's performance the least creepy. Steve Carell played probably the most serious character in this film, and dmittedly, he was very good. I had a great time watching the film. (01/17/2018)

Funny, intelligent, pleasantly paced, well acted, and scored with a magnificent soundtrack. While being an indie, it is accessible to everyone. In addition, it has a large dose of gradually built up sympathy for the individual characters, so in the end you care about them and have a hard time saying goodbye to them... Everything is as it should be and, moreover, in above-standard quality. UPDATE: After Little Miss Sunshine, you will be left with such a great feeling of well-being for much longer than after seeing any other picture recently, and the second viewing has the same effect. That's why I'm adding another *. (11/05/2006)

A similar "sensation" as, for example, Sideways. Meaning a slightly bitter in places, but mostly reliable comedy, where either love adventures or family troubles are dealt with. The filmmakers cannot be denied a flair for situational humour and solid dialogue, as well as well-drawn characters, mostly well acted. It’s nothing groundbreaking or revolutionary for the genre, but it delivers solid entertainment with one American redneck family. (04/20/2023)