Review of The Kings of Summer (2013) by M H — 27 Dec 2013

A fantastic film. The three lead "kid" actors were just fabulous. Its kind of amazing that Moises is doing pretty well for himself considering he had a supporting role on Hannah Montana a few years back. But they were all very funny and brought a sense of realism into the story. The adults were a bit more on the annoying side. I like that for purposes, they were pretty "normal". Though, I just didn't like the actors they chose. Especially Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman. They just had this really annoying way of delivering their lines. Maybe it was done on purpose, so we would side with the kids but I just felt it was annoying and not necessary. We all were teenagers at one point, and I'm sure we all felt like we knew everything and could take anything on. I think it would be pretty easy to relate to them, without having to make the parents come across as annoying. But like I said, that might have been just the actors and not the direction choice. Who knows. But then again, my other problem with the parents is that they didnt seem to devasted. We saw a little bit of it when the 2 dads when fishing, and later on with Nick Offerman on the couch. But, I just felt like they weren't sad enough. There was too much joking going on. That didn't seem real to me.

But besides that one fault, I really liked the script. I thought it was very funny. Moises gets the majority of funny lines. But it was touching. I really felt for Joe (nick Robinson) when the girl he likes go for his best friend. That whole shot was heartbreaking. I also loved the scenery and cinematography. Hell, it made me want to pick up the phone, call a few friends and plan a camping trip. It was so beautifully shot and made it seem very fun and lively. And, I thought the film was very well paced. Never felt too slow. Never felt bored.

It had a similar vibe to Stand By Me and if you love that film, I think you'll like this one as well.