Thursday, November 9, 2017
Page 61
The Movie Column
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“The Florida Project” reviewed by Tom Sims of Cape May Film Society
his movie is Beasts of the Southern Wild, but just a little further south. The Florida Project is a story of the cruelty of poverty and the havoc made by poor choices. Halley is a young mom living in the Magic Castle. No, no not a magic castle but a rundown motel by that name. It’s all she can afford as she buys cheap knock off perfume and re-sells it to tourists throughout the area. She lives just a stone’s throw away from Disney World, but it may as well be half a planet away. She lives with her seven-year-old daughter, Moonee. A belligerent but endearing kid, she gets into (and sometimes out of) a lot of trouble. Moonee’s playground is not the amusement park mecca close by. No, it is the absurdly shaped souvenir stores or ice cream stands or restaurants nearby. She begs for money to get an ice cream cone to share with her friends. The kids visit a nearby abandoned ghetto of condos — and of course set fire to it. Bria Vinaite plays Halley. She is crude —
Willem Dafoe in The Florida Project no, wait. That’s flattering. So choose a word worse than that and fill it in here. She’s a wretched soul, a nomad wandering through a wasteland of abject poverty. Brooklyn Prince plays her daughter. It’s difficult for me to find words to describe this kid’s abilities. Similar to Quvenzhané Wallis, the small child from the 2012 Academy Award nominated film, Beasts of the Southern Wild, this kid is an amazing talent. This film never quite gets to the level of allegory as
that movie, but it is a stunning portrayal of how so many live in the shadows of opulent resort towns. Willem Dafoe is the maintenance manager at the castle. It’s an unforgiving job. Constantly hunting down rent money, moving tenants for the night to nearby motels so they don’t establish residency. All this on top of painting, keeping kids safe from predators, fixing ice machines and monitoring the security system. It seems a neverending job. Life at the motel is trudging along. It is summer and the kids are out of school. The adults work or play video games all day or do whatever to pass the time. The maintenance guy is part janitor and part saint. Halley pushes the limits of bottom-feeder enterprise. Her home, or should I say motel room home, is badly jeopardized. Look for Oscar buzz around this movie. If you don’t think people live like this, then you live it in a bubble. This film will help you stay grounded and appreciate all that you have.
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