BOYHOOD is writer/ director Richard Linklater’s
bold
experiment of making a movie over 12 years chronicling a family as a boy grows
up and changes from a kid to leaving for college. The cast would meet
for a week each year to
shoot off center moments in the lives of a mother (Patricia Arquette), her son
Mason (Ellar Coltrane), her daughter (Lorelei Linklater), and their father
Mason sr. (Ethan Hawke) who sees the kids every other weekend in addition to
the people that go in and out of their lives.
BOYHOOD is a little long where I do think it would have benefited from
being shorter since the first hour drags on for too long before the movie gets
lots more interesting as the son and the mother get older. You do get to relate
to some things in this
movie and it will vary depending on the person and your own experiences growing
up and whether you are a parent.
BOYHOOD evolved over the course of 12 years like life evolves.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
THE 12 YEAR PROJECT- interviews with Richard
Linklater and
the four leads (who even interview each other during the course of the 12
years)
Q&A WITH RICHARD LINKLATER AND
THE CAST- this is 50 minute Q&A session that took place after a screening
at CineFamily as the director and most of the cast (except Lorelei) seem at
ease as they answer questions about their experiences making the movie and how
it relates to their own lives
FINAL ANALYSIS:
BOYHOOD is a unique film and you probably won’t see many movies made
like this one over a 12 year period with a possibility it might never get
finished. Kudos to IFC
taking a gamble on backing this project.
I do think it would have been a little better if it was edited tighter,
but I would like to congratulate the movie on winning Best Picture, Best
Director, and Best Supporting Actress (for Patricia Arquette) at the Golden
Globes. Go rent the movie now to see why everyone is
buzzing about it.
This review is ©1-12-2015
David Blackwell and cannot be reprinted without permission. Send all comments
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