Purely Joyful Movie!

In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

The Florida Project is the most gritty, real movie since the movie Kids. It's the most powerful movie since Pan's Labyrinth. If you are a movie fan, this is a must see.

The Florida Project is a drama film starring Willem Dafoe. Directed and co-written by Sean Baker (Tangerine), it a raw and unrelenting look into a side of American culture many try to ignore but at the same time cannot look away from.In the city of Kissimmee, Florida, six-year-old Moonee (Brooklynn Prince) lives with her anarchic young mother Halley (Bria Vinaite) in a run-down motel. To pass the time during Summer break, Moonee spends her days with other motel resident kids, causing mischief, conning tourists out of money, and getting on the nerves of the motel's manager Bobby (Willem Dafoe).The film makes no attempts at sugarcoating its depiction of lower-class civilian life in America. As unsympathetic as many of the characters are, they all seem like realistic people most will have encountered at some point and director Sean Baker chooses a more down-to-earth approach at showing their lifestyles rather than the usual Hollywood-manufactured sentiment. All of the young child actors were fantastic and gave convincing performances. However, it is Willem Dafoe who shines the most as the serious but well-intentioned motel manager Bobby as he tries to help his guests deal with any outbreak of chaos. This is not an easy film for a casual viewer to sit through, but if one can stomach some of the more extreme moments, then I suggest seeing it at least once.I rate it 7/10

Writer and director Sean Baker (Tangerine) thrives telling stories about marginalized places in society, and he always opts for empathy over judgement calls in exploring the lives of his broken characters. While Willem Dafoe is great in this movie, and his presence is needed as a grounded and warm figure, Baker's employment of non-actors for most other roles is both impressive (they're convincing) and adds an extremely powerful element of realism.This honest look into severe poverty and homelessness may have been too hard to stomach if it wasn't viewed through the curious, humorous, and life-affirming perspective of Moonee, who is as much a Disney Princess as Snow White, Cinderella, or Little Mermaid. The duality of Orlando is thought-provoking and the central thesis here could very well be that "the most magical place on earth" is inside a child's mind, not a theme park.

Yeah this movie could have been Oscar worthy if it weren't for that terribly executed, irredeemably bad ending. I get the premise of it but I refuse to believe that there couldn't have been a better way to do it. I was loving everything else up until the last 60 seconds, which was seriously one of the most unsatisfying endings to any film that came out in 2017. It's such a shame.