Beasts of the Southern Wild

I liked so much about this film that it is hard to pinpoint the exact moments or elements that I liked most.  The film confronts issues of inequality, power and dominance head-on making the film political without being ideological.  It was unexpectedly funny with a sharp wit.  And importantly, this movie is funny without being cheap.  I find so many movies these days use cheap humor to get a laugh.  

It isn't billed as a comedy because it isn't comedy; it is a drama.  I would actually call the film magical realism in terms of genre.  Emotions and feeling are deeply intertwined with the universe and what is happening in Hush Puppy's emotional life is articulated in nature through explosive and catastrophic events.  The serious tone of the film is balanced with fable-like qualities, authenticity, and wit.  

This is really important when trying to tell a story about South Louisiana, a place that has experienced so much tragedy.  Yet, I have never heard anyone -- my family or friends included -- from home complain about disasters.  They lament destruction and willingly tell stories of loss, but it is always with a sense of resilience and nod toward the fact that it is all a natural part of life.  For example, two months after Katrina, around Halloween, when people who had returned to the city were tasked with disposing of their refrigerators they dressed them up before setting them outside for pick up and delivery to a local refrigerator graveyard...and then, people also proceeded to dress up like refrigerators for Halloween that year.  

That is the spirit of South Louisiana (not just New Orleans), and I was enormously entertained with this movie that managed to capture it so well.  Here is the trailer if you haven't seen it yet: