The Florida Project (2017)

I went into this as an Odeon screen unseen, I had never heard of it at this point. Going in completely blind. The opening was bright and sunny and had natural seeming kids running around. The first thing I noticed was how often the name Sean Baker came up on screen. I do preemptively judge a film if I see that one person has an unmatched level of involvement. As many independent filmmakers, Baker directed, produced, wrote and edited The Florida Project. He also did the same for Tangerine (2015) a film that made a mark due to being shot entirely with iPhones. I believe this can affect the showing of a story sometimes, like tunnel vision, having a secondary opinion can make a difference.

This for the most part was ignored until the end. The 'story' if you want to call it that, follows Moonee a 6 year old girl who lives in a motel room with her mum and runs around over summer making friends and causing trouble. The film doesn't have much of a narrative, more a social commentary of Florida's lower class residents. It plays like a memory or a diary of someone who grow up in those conditions. Because I think you do find yourself wondering not just how it will end but when. It's hard to pace something that isn't necessarily going anywhere.

The cast was great, the only big recognisable face was Wilem Dafoe, the motel owner, and father to the building. I have always thought he's a wonderful actor and he does make a point of choosing quite dissimilar roles. He has the fine balance of being at wits end with the children and protecting them dearly. Moonee is played by young Brooklyn Prince, sweet and annoying in equal measure just like a normal 6 year old. She sporadically uses language and attitude as if shes in her twenties, a clear notation of how much time she's spent with her mother, who treats her like a friend more than her daughter. Bria Vinaite, the mother, Halley, is again a natural. Being her first feature length and first film in general its easier to see her as the character as we don't know anything else. It seemed so genuine that I would struggle to see her in any other way with any other accent. The rest of the cast are similar, the children young and real but still showing the traits of their respective parental figure.

The cinematography was gorgeous. Natural lighting was apparent from the get go, lots of sunrises and sunsets colouring the frame with warm reds and orange evenings. The motel was a giant purple building, a man made backdrop to a lot of scenes. Moonee and her friend Jancey have free reign of outside but inside we only have a few rooms as motels do. The few locations mimic their lives of having a bedroom and a bathroom and nothing else. The sound does the same, no score or music in the film until the final scene. Everything gives a raw documentary feel to it.

My only beef was the end of the film. And I'm sure many others feel the same. People in the cinema laughed out loud then asked amongst themselves, is that gonna be the end? Then when the credits rolled there was audible groans. It's the first piece of music we have from the film and its a dampened down version of Cool and the Gang's 'Celebration'. No spoilers but the film ends in Disney World and you can tell this not just due to the iconic castle but due to Baker obviously not wanting to pay for consent to film professionally. The footage goes from smooth wonderfully coloured shots to jagged phone footage. It's abrupt and kind of undercuts the visual world that had been created.

Subtle social commentary on the poor people living so close to the money making Disney World and it's ever coming tourists. A definite eyeopener to the status that some people live though somewhat disappointing ending. If you're open minded and like your artsy films, a solid 7/10 otherwise you might find the lack of conclusion frustrating.

CINEMATES - A