Millions

My Dad must have really liked Millions (and gotten a deal by buying it in bulk) for it was his gift to pretty much everyone. I had not seen this movie before, so I thought I'd share my thoughts.

I was not expecting to enjoy this movie. The movie is hailed as the best "family movie" of the year. When I think of family movies, I think of horrid formulaic comedies with poor child acting and boring cinematography. None of those things describe this movie.

The story itself is presented in a very original way. Things happen, and the reasons they occur happen later. The plot is always keeping the audience guessing, but without confusing it with missing details. If you miss something while watching, it's only because you didn't need to know that information yet, and you didn't notice. That's my kind of storytelling.

The main character is a young boy who is obsessed with saints. He just wants to do good while dealing with the loss of his mother. His interactions with his older brother, who is dealing with their loss in a different way, are perfectly executed. The performances of all characters ring true and kept me enthralled.

My favorite part of this movie is the cinematography. It turns out that Millions was directed by Danny Boyle, who did Trainspotting (and two other films I own on his list). You should recognize Trainspotting as the stylistic drug film that is in every way opposite of Millions except for the cinematography and british accents. That's probably why my Dad likes it so much. He managed to appreciate Trainspotting even though he normally detests that subject matter. He could see through the horrible details of what it portrayed, but understood the excellence of that portrayal. Millions is a film for a moviegoer like him.

I highly recommend this movie to anyone, and I'm glad to have it added to my collection.