Boyhood

Welcome to another episode of Lights....Camera....Popcorn!

Today's review is Boyhood.

Written & Directed by Richard Linklater.

Review #258

MPAA Rating: Rated R for language including sexual references, and for teen drug and alcohol use.

Run Time: 165 min

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Cast

Ellar Coltrane...Mason

Patricia Arquette...Mom

Ethan Hawke...Dad

Lorelei Linklater...Samantha

Making movies is at times a painstaking process. So much goes into a production that directors literally spend years putting their passion on screen. It takes an amazing amount of attention to detail and dedication. With the way studios breathe down director's necks it's amazing that films get made at all. Knowing all of this now take into consideration the amount of attention and dedication that's needed to make a film that took 12 years to film.

That's how long it took to make Boyhood and there's no question....It was WORTH THE WAIT!

Plot

The life of a young man, Mason, from age 5 to age 18.

Now before I begin I want to put to rest a "friendly" debate I had with someone who dared to categorize my praise of this film a faint because it wasn't the first film to take this long to make. Anyone and I do mean ANYONE that challenges this film with Avatar as an example of an exhaustive, time consuming production needs to be educated and QUICKLY! 

I do concede that Avatar is a labor of love for James Cameron. HOWEVER! There's NO WAY on god's green earth that overrated cartoon can be put in this film's class. Did it take Cameron a better part of 15 years to make? Absolutely, and what did he do with that time? He made The Last of The Mohicans in outer space filled with computer generated characters that exhibited more life that the LIVING cast.

Boyhood goes so far beyond the concept of "taking your time" that it toes the line between a scripted film and documentary. In fact this film can be properly classified as a docudrama.

To follow the growth and maturity of a child from age 5 to 18 is an ambitious undertaking that requires a lot of attention to continuity. A lot has to go right for this project to be pulled off and for Linklater, things appeared to have gone well. It helped that he was surrounded by some pretty strong actors. Ethan Hawke and Patricia Aquette headline the group of adults that form around the lives of Mason and his sister Samantha. The film chronicles the strained and distant relationship between dad and mom as she tries to raise two kids on her own. Mom does all the heavy lifting and dad swoops in and unconditionally receives the kids love because he's the absentee parent. As I was watching this film I began to wonder if this scenario was going to play out throughout the whole film.

Then this scene happened that changed everything.

The scene pictured looks pretty harmless right? For the most part it was. Dad spending some quality time knocking down some pins with the kids. Then comes a life lesson moment that turned this film into something more important than just a presentation of watching a boy grow up. At one point Mason complains that he bowled better when the bumpers were up on the lane. Dad explains to him that bumpers are cheating and that it's much more rewarding to roll a strike without them. Trust me, as a bowler for over 25 years I know. Mason continues to sulk and looks like he wants to give up on the game when dad gets frustrated and tells him.....(I'm paraphrasing here) "Life doesn't give you bumpers, you have to learn to do things on your own." His point was that just because bowling seemed easier the last time he used the bumpers that now he has to adjust without them. Which is a perfect metaphor for life.

That small line turned this film into a true coming of age story for Mason.

Boyhood does more than just follow the growth of Mason. It chronicles the growth of everyone around him. From his mom, dad to his sister as well. This film has garnered critic acclaim for Ellar Coltrane's performance as Mason and rightfully so. However there is a player in this film that deserves just as much credit and possibly more.

Her name is Lorelei Linklater as Samantha.

From the first moment she steps on screen doing a hysterical impression of Britney Spears to annoy Mason, Samantha goes toe to toe with Mason at every turn. Linklater's performance is just as compelling. Not just because we saw her grow up at the same time as Mason. It's because she plays off him the way an older sibling would in any family structure. Then in certain moments Linklater gets to shine by acting exactly how a young girl should. Bratty, annoying, disrespectful, selfish, all the things that teenage girls are when they think they know everything. This comes out masterfully by Linklater and ramps up the drama and intrigue of this film one hundred fold. Linklater provides so much balance between her and Mason that you could make a strong case for this film to change it's title from Boyhood to Childhood.

Several things happen to Mason, Sam and Mom that shape the course of their lives and as Mason continued to age he began to develop a very annoying personality. It was very lackadaisical, not a care in the world mindset that really got to me. I was on his side for most of this film until he hit high school and started this attitude and then it hit me like a ton of bricks. How can a boy learn to be a man when there isn't one around to guide him. The father figures that he collected along the way were people you didn't want him to emulate and his real father was Persona Non Grata for most of his adolescent life. I should have caught this sooner but I was so annoyed by Mason's demeanor that it blinded me to the reality of his situation.

This speaks highly of Coltrane's performance.

As the film draws to it's close, Mason begins to find his footing and shed his s**t on life attitude and when he gets to college you finally see where his head is at and where he could be going. It was the perfect point in his life to finish this journey and it ended at the most pitch perfect moment.

Here, Mason is hanging out with some friends he just met at school and this conversation he has with this girl was poignant. The girl asks him about the saying "seize the moment" and how it's the other way around that the moment seizes them.

College freshman shouldn't be this deep.

The point is that Mason in his mind has finally found someone that shares similar mindsets and philosophies. The bond they begin to build is clear as day and just like that....

Cut to black.

Brilliant closure point for a film that pushes the envelop at almost 3 hours. Having said that, Boyhood doesn't play like that. It's as similar as Blue Is the Warmest Color. Read review HERE. Boyhood isn't as erotically or emotionally charged as Blue is but the film does have a parallel in that both leads explore their maturity and adulthood over a period of time.

Regardless, Boyhood is a cinematic achievement that requires your viewing. Take the time to witness the journey of a boy to man story.

It's worth it.

On the 5 star scale. Boyhood gets 4 stars with a "Worth Every Penny!" recommendation.

That's a wrap for today.

Until Next Episode...."I'll Save You A Seat!"

"D"