Little Miss Sunshine [2006] (DVD)

Gives a little sunshine This is both a beautiful and eventually uplifting movie. I know people that cried most of the way through, but I found this movie to be both well scripted and acted with a great cast. Added to that, this is a quality transfer in terms of picture and sound quality. By clicking `Confirm review' you agree to abide by our

Dysfunctional family 'find themselves' on the road The Hoopers are a classic dysfunctional family, Dad is trying (and failing) to become a self-help guru, Mum is just overloaded, her brother has just tried to commit suicide, her son has sworn a vow of silence, her father-in-law is growing old disgracefully, and seven year old Olive - well she's sweet, and when she wins a place in a beauty pageant in LA, they decide to go together. The only problem is they're over 800 miles away. So they leap into the camper van for a weekend away that turns into one of those road trips from hell. The cast manage all of the ups and downs with panache and great comic timing, you really feel for them, and the film deserves its happy ending where the family come together properly for the first time. Alan Arkin is a great foul-mouthed grandpa, Toni Colette and Greg Kinnear make truly stressed parents, Steve Carrell has some great dead-pan lines as the suicidal brother, and the outright star is Abigail Breslin as the perky daughter who is a real comfort. Heart-warming and a joy from start to finish.

Best film in ages My husband and I rarely agree on what film to watch never mind actually liking the same one. This ticked boxes for both of us and I can honestly say the first film I have relly laughed at in a long time!

By turns uplifting and heartbreaking Looking at the reviews on here it has to be said that this film seems to be one that divides viewers. Personally I cannot understand how anyone could watch it and think they had "wasted two hours" of their lives or that its "drivel"- I found this totally charming. The story revolves around the highly dysfunctional Hoover clan and their little poppet Olive who's one dream it is to be a beauty princess in one of those grossly unpleasant pre-teen beauty contests that occasionally have documentaries made about them. The man of the house is Richard, a would-be motivational speaker, whose obsession with winning marks him out as a total loser. Mom is Sheryl, played by the wonderful Toni Collette, a control freak on the verge of watching her second marriage crumble. The first time we see Grandpa he is taking heroin and teenager Dwayne has taken a vow of silence until he gets accepted for flight school to be a pilot. Into this fractured dynamic comes Sheryl's brother Frank, recovering from a suicide attempt after being rejected by his male lover. When a stroke of luck sees Olive win a place in the eponymous Little Miss Sunshine contest the whole family bundle into a battered VW bus and basically push it from New Mexico to California. Along the way they are forced to face up to a number of truths about themselves and each other and almost universally watch their dreams turn to smoke and blow away, and yet its utterly uplifting because they never give up on Olive's dream even when their own are shattered. There's not a weak link in the cast with cute-as-a-button Olive winning hearts and Alan Arkin as grandpa delivering all the best salty lines as the drug using, porn loving, old man. Steve Carell turns in a very understated performance as Uncle Frank while Paul Dano's silent teen's heartbreak is crushing to watch. Ultimately we know Olive will not win Little Miss Sunshine and the final scenes are uncomfortable to watch. Equally the writers' intent is clear as they raise the hypocrisy in these contests. In the end though Olive is a winner because she wasn't afraid to try and this victory carries her family and the viewer along with her. A real gem.

Fantastic Film!!! I love this film....it is such a heart warming story and the acting is fantastic, especially from Toni Collette and Steve Carell. The characters are all so different but work well together in their own weird way! I would definitely recommend Little Miss Sunshine if you like films with simple yet effective storylines and films that aren't quite so `Hollywood'.