Review: The Florida Project

4.5

Summary

A lyrical, intense, superbly shot and impeccably cast study of life on the fringes that mesmerises while taking you through the entire emotional spectrum. A must see.

The Floridian landscape is one of contrasts. Popular culture tells us its filled with theme parks and cantankerous retirees. Yet Florida is one of the poorest states in the US, with over 18% of children living in poverty according to a 2008 study. Sean Baker (Tangerine) takes the central artery of US Highway 192 as his backdrop, the less glamourous edges of the Magic Kingdom where the worlds of tomorrow have given way to the realities of today.

Baker’s particularly fascinated with the groups of people who don’t just stay in the motels that sprung up on the road to Disney World, but live their entire lives there. Hellraising six year-old Moonee (Brooklyn Prince) and her friends run through the decaying surrounds of the Magic Castle motel with a perpetual sense of wonder, oblivious to their lack of wealth. Her mother Halley (Bria Vinaite) struggles to make rent, while motel manager Bobby (Willem Dafoe) keeps the strange in check as a default father figure.

Baker has described his story as a “modern day Our Gang,” name-checking a parallel to the comedy shorts where poverty stricken children ruled the streets during the Depression. THE FLORIDA PROJECT focuses mostly on children living in similar circumstances almost a century later, and their meaningless pastimes form most of the action. Like the tonally similar American Honey, the film’s pace reflects the lack of urgency of the people we are observing.

Baker’s observational approach is gorgeously shot by cinematographer Alexis Zabé, who describes it as “blueberry ice cream with a sour twist.” The kids wander past monoliths to failing commerce, like the brightly domed Orange World or the gift store mascots, almost as though they are wandering through a giant’s trash. Indeed, the film’s title mirror’s Walt Disney’s original name for his “experimental community of tomorrow,” one that simply became a collection of theme parks after his death. While the film doesn’t judge, it’s the closest Baker’s film comes to visually pointing a finger at the corporations who earn off the back of devastated communities.

The wonderfully cast Bria Vinaite was discovered via Instagram, but it’s difficult to imagine anybody more appropriate to the role. Dafoe gives an award-worthy turn as the manager/sheriff/father of the dysfunctional community, a grounded performance that the veteran disappears into. Of course, young Prince is a force of nature, and one would believe she is actually feeling everything we see on screen.

There’s a scene where Moonee sits on a giant fallen tree, saying that it’s her favourite because it’s toppled but still growing. Which is a bit like the little community we get to spend some time with, and maybe even become a part of for a while. We desperately want to see more for little Moonee, but know full well that the cycle is set in stone. Yet just like her we simply get swept up in the magical fantasy finale that shows the true legacy of the American Dream, one that is assured in the face of all contrary indicators.

THE FLORIDA PROJECT debuts in Australia at the Adelaide Film Festival. It opens nationally in January 2018.