Review of The Florida Project (2017) by Tex S — 10 Nov 2017

The Florida Project: It would have been better as a documentary.

The Florida Project is compelling, wondrous and bleak. I don't mind bleak. I loved "Moon", "Moonlight" and "Monster," among other bleak cinema. And like those films, The Florida Project is full of great performances. But to what end? It goes nowhere. The film is a series of concentric plot circles leading to the same conclusion over and over. It plays as a fantasy in many ways. The problem? The situation presented in the film is all too real, and it would have been better as a documentary.

The filmmakers find a way to make the dismal landscape of low-end hotels neighboring Disney World visually interesting. Not once did the angles or edits disrupt the excellent performances of the actors. The children were particularly excellent in the film, but the adults also shine. The film wasn't expensive to shoot, but it was inventive. Let that be a lesson to all directors and cinematographers: cranes, planes and helicopters are not needed to produce compelling visuals.

The music was pleasant and subtle. Finally, a drama that finds the story compelling enough to not flood the audience with insipid music just in case they didn't get that a war is DRAMATIC! Feel, damn it, feel! I'm talking to you John Williams, and now you, Hans Zimmer (see my Dunkirk review). And guess what? It's less expensive to have simple orchestration and sound.

The conflicts in the story reflect the real struggles of real people who have no reason or chance to invest in politics or community, people who never know if they will have a place to sleep or food to eat the next day. In other words, they are people the politicians in D.C., state capitals, the media and most citizens ignore. They are the precariat. I assume the writers (Sean Baker and Chris Bergoch) and director (Sean Baker) made this film fictional so more people would see it. However, if the point was to criticize our capitalist system that leaves too many behind and suffering, then it misses the mark. It's a nice film that audiences will forget tomorrow and nothing will change for the actual people living precarious lives like the characters in this film.

The ending to the The Florida Project works, and doesn't. It trivializes the situation of the characters and detracts from a touching moment between two of the outstanding child stars. However, the ending fits with the film's themes of escapism and survival. Go see it and decide for yourself. ??Rating: Matinee.

The film is well done but too long. Perhaps the tedium of events in the film was used to show the tedium of the lives of the characters. But film needs to go beyond a presentation. If it addresses serious issues, it need to blend elements of character, plot and setting to imply a third meaning. In the film's efforts to create dramatic realism, The Florida Project misses a real opportunity to show the problems with our economy and inequality in the world in general. The film skirts above the surface of the issues and lacks the depth and grit to be truly impactful. In the end, its subjects become mere objects for us to wonder over like displays at Disney World. ??

Peace,.

Tex Shelters.