Review of The Florida Project (2017) by Andra G — 30 Dec 2017

A Disturbingly Realistic Depiction of Terrible Parenting.

I found this movie very hard to watch. I was seriously considering becoming a foster parent before I saw this movie. I'm much less sure after having seen a vivid portrayal of what sort of brat I would likely end up caring for. Unlike most of the people that rated this movie highly, the sadness of the situation stood out less to me than just what a train wreck of a human being the mother was. Sure, she was in a difficult situation but to ascribe all of her problems to socioeconomic injustice is to deprive her of agency. It also crossed my mind at some points that a lot of the characters might just not have a lot of cognitive capacity or ability to manage their own emotions.

The fact the movie elicits such strong feelings is a testament to the filmmaker's talent. Willem Dafoe's character seems primarily there to show how a normal adult would view the situation. You never get the sense that the rest of the characters view their lives with sadness or that there's anything wrong with the way they are living.

One thing the film makes clear though is that the mother and daughter love each other deeply. It's easy to think that bad parents somehow just don't care about their kids but this movie illustrates that is far from the case in most of these situations. Somehow, despite disliking both the main characters, I found myself in tears at their fates.