Little_Miss_Sunshine

The Hoover family is highly dysfunctional. They are sarcastic, argumentative, and at times distant from one another. Directors Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris in creating the film Little Miss Sunshine, created a family where there is little that is holding them together and it only becomes more complicated when Sheryl Hoover’s brother (Uncle Frank) enters the picture as he is unable to be left alone after attempting suicide. Her husband (Richard) has a failing self-help program, her son (Dwayne) is protesting his parents by not speaking until he is able to become a jet pilot. Her father (Grandpa Edwin) is a heroin addict, and amidst all of this her seven year old daughter has just been invited to compete in the Little Miss Sunshine Beauty Pageant in California. This prompts the entire family to all pack into their 1970’s VW bus on an 800 mile road trip to pursue Olive’s dream. The entire movie focuses on this family as a single entity, thus making family a dominating theme throughout the movie. This encompasses an intriguing and realistic family dynamic, the family uniting and coming together and as they provide a support system for one another. The Hoover family is a relatively typical American family that is on the brink of self-destruction for a majority of the film. They are consistently impatient and unable to relate to one another, yet they have a foundation that ultimately brings the family together. What makes the Hoover’s actions so intriguing is the place they have come to in their individual lives. Richard’s job situation is less than desirable and complicates many things for the family who is on the verge of bankruptcy. Dwayne is in the process of protesting against his parents by not speaking for the sake of learning to fly one day; Frank has just been released from the hospital after just having attempted suicide; and Olive has just been given the opportunity to compete in a beauty contest. All of their individual circumstances that compound upon one another create a situation where everyone is at risk for being pushed over the edge. It seems as though everyone is just about ready to snap when an event happens that keeps them grounded and reminds all of them to support one another and stick together. For instance, when their grandfather dies, the family, though still dysfunctional, comes together as they mourn their loss. This is represented when they are sitting in the waiting room and Sheryl (the mother) begins to cry and Dwayne tells Olive to give her a hug. Though it’s somewhat of an unconventional way to care for someone, you can see the heart behind it. Dwayne seems careful not to show any sort of affection for his family except for Olive at various points. Olive seems to be the character most focused on throughout the movie. After all, she’s the reason that they go on the road trip and it’s her that is participating in this beauty contest. But this isn’t the only reason that she sticks out the most. Though she is the youngest member of the family, she’s the most positive, caring, and unaffected by circumstances (though her grandpa also many of these characteristics as well, which is an explanation as to why they often are with one another). Everyone else seems jaded and unfulfilled. In the scene where Dwayne finds out he’s color blind and is unable to go to flying school, Olive is the only one who is able to bring him to his senses. She did this without saying anything to him, but rather just putting her arm around him and simply being with him. This is a testament to the relationship that the two of them have and the kind of person that Olive is. She communicated more to him in saying nothing than anyone else had in talking to him. In this moment, Dwayne is being critical of the way his family members live, so this shows that he’s seen how Olive lives and not only is he not critical of her, but he respects her. More than anything, the interactions of the Hoover family are inconsistent which reflects the dysfunctionality of the family. They very often will act on their emotions and display them very outwardly. In the scene where Grandpa Edwin goes to his son Richard while he’s driving and very sincerely expresses how he’s proud of his son for strongly pursuing his self-help seminar program and trying to make a success of it. It’s this same man that is addicted to heroin and spoke to Dwayne about having sex with as many women as he can. These kinds of scenes create an honesty and a transparency with the characters and makes it very relatable for most people. The families interactions are flawed and the film makers didn’t try to mask this reality with a deceptive view of family life that is so common in Hollywood.