Review of Millions (2005) by Eric O — 20 Mar 2008

[font=Arial]It's easy to be cynical. Especially in an year that we've seen every fiber of our society break down. Our leaders were seen to be useless. Our jobs are going away. And the movies this year reflect our concerns. But then you have some films that break that mold, that hold on to hope with everything it has and in by doing so, make you realize that perhaps we can get through this. This year, Millions is such a film.

Millions is about two young brothers Anthony (Lewis McGibbon) and Damian (Alex Etel) who had just lost their mother and their father is still reeling from the loss (in a small scene that you almost miss, you realize just how much he reels). They move into a new house and go to a new school. The two boys find different ways to cope. Anthony tries to fit in. Damian talks to saints. Damian's knowlege of the saints is not only impressive but also a little spooky. But then, what kid doesn't hold knowlege that isn't a little spooky. If you don't believe me, just ask the next 5-year-old you come by the molecular structure of beans that makes it "the magical fruit".

The story comes into focus when a gym bag comes out of nowhere and lands on Damian's cardboard fort. The bag is full of British pounds and quids. Damian sees it as a gift from God. When he tells Anthony, Anthony sees it as a way to get in good with his friends and make more money. While Anthony spends little to make life easier for himself, Damian keeps giving it to the poor. In a particularly funny scene, he stuffs bills into the mail slot of the local Mormons (who accidently categorized their living condition as "poor") with the help of Saint Nickolas (aka Santa Claus). Things get even more interesting when a strange man comes around lurking here and there, obviously looking for the money and when Damian makes a very generous donation that ultimately gets his father involved with a particularly nice young woman. The last half-hour of the film ties all these ends up with true sincerity instead of cheap kids games. And when we leave, we're satisfied.

When I finished Millions, I liked the film but I didn't love it. It was only after I thought about for a moment and found the key to the film did I truly understand why this film is not only great, but masterful. The key is this: Look at the story from the heart of a child. Maybe this story actually took place or perhaps, like Damian's saintly visitors, they're really caught between the facts and the imagination. When you see the last scene of the movie, you'll understand what I'm saying. Millions is the kind of film I hope is recognized on the same level as E.T. Both films are about kids with a secret, both don't downplay parents, and both are about true emotions using unusual circumstances as catylists. And yes, you'll tear up in the end when a very special saint comes down (and the first piece of advise given is the usefulness of hair conditioner).

In recent years, we have seen more than a few great child actors. Millions is no different. But the performance that still floors me is Alex Etel as Damian. This is really his story, but like the boy, he gives times to everybody around him. Etel makes Damian both noble with his generousity and also nieve at the same time. Does he understand that some people choose to live poor (such as those very lucky Mormons)? Or that by giving that money away so carelessly he might be doing more harm than good? But how should he know? He's 9. The saints to him are a moral support group. They don't really help distinguish right and wrong, only confirm what he already feels is right. When he does ask, the saint (which happens to be Peter) tells an interesting take on the bread to fish miracle, but doesn't give a definate answer. Another performance that I really liked was James Nesbitt's as the father. He loves his sons, but he's also reeling from the loss in very quiet ways. When a very hard choice is made late into the film, you realize that he's not "father knows best", but a man scared and a man hurt by life. We see the contrast between Damian's ideas and his fathers in very interesting scene.

Danny Boyle's movies before this have been hard, graphic and sometimes down-right brutal. In Millions, he transcends beyond his relm into a place only few directors will ever know. He has made the perfect family film without sacrificing his dignity or playing down below his level. The degree of sophistication in his visual effects are staggering but not entirely whimsical. This movie can compare with the best of Tim Burton's work and beat it senseless. Take a scene where a house is built from the ground up as the boys go running through it. But it is not just the visual effects that are staggering, it's his direction of two boys that have never been in starring roles of this gravity and his ability to keep the action moving without sacrificing character. And that is what makes a perfect director.

All in all, Millions is a kind of film that you can walk away from and smile. But you don't just smile. You begin to hope. You begin to remember childhood not as nostalgia, but with admiration that you made it through and that things worked out in the end. And when you talk to that very same 5-year-old, that he's going to be okay too. And that he'll never truly forget what he knows about beans.[/font].