Review of The Florida Project (2017) by James T — 15 Dec 2017

So, we saw The Florida Project project yesterday afternoon and I was not sure exactly what to think. With the abrupt, hyperactive ending, I left the theater not necessarily confused, but rather with a sense of "um.

.. okay?!" The film had me in it's grasp all the way until the end, and then it was just like I hit a wall. The characters in the film are so unlikable a majority of the time... yet, you find yourself invested in their stories and caring about them.

The entire film has such a sad hope to it. I seriously wanted to shake some of the characters to the core and try to make them see their own reality! There were so many scenes of utter disgust for being a film that is presented in trailers as being so uplifting and hopeful.

But, I guess that is part of the trick. For, the tagline says "Make your own Kingdom!" And, with that you can look deeply into the performance and character of Brooklyn Prince and see the clouded innocence and free-spirited defense that survives the ordeals presented.

Brooklyn is a child actor that is one to watch in the coming years. The girl knows how to captivate and carry every scene as if she has been in the biz for many years! By the end, you even feel for the mother.

.. whom is despicable throughout, but has moments that go further than showing what a mess she is, and how underneath the filth of it all she does have a heart. It is a complicated film that some may come away from hating or simply saying has no purpose.

I, myself, uttered "whats the damn point?" through my own frustrations during exit. But, having let it absorbed and having time to think about it, I didn't hate it at all. The film does not have a traditional storytelling approach.

It is a slice of life that skips from one moment to the next, allowing the scenes to build upon themselves in a peculiar "distant memory" sort of way... perhaps the sort of way we remember bits and pieces of our own childhoods.

.. But, I think for me, it was difficult at times to watch because it reminded me somewhat of my small hometown... Being reminded of the utter slums hidden away in an already small town where certain kids run freely and wreck havoc underneath turning eyes, while their parents feed off of the system and only occupy the city due to it holding one of the largest women's prisons in the US was not pleasant.

The sad fact of THE FLORIDA PROJECT is that people can be living in squander and be "happy" as it is the only reality they know.... Yet, mere feet away can be an entire new world that is ready to change their lives for the better.

.. they may have every desire to enter "The Happiest Place on Earth", but simply lack the ability to fully realize and experience such. (4 of 5 stars).