Beginners

Beginners is movie about love, about emotions, about understanding and about becoming yourself. It’s a film about the passage of time, of life happening to you, through you, of you.

Beginners is a film of sweet and aching beauty, of sincere and humble vision and small, soft wonder, in which a despondent man is brought to life through his father’s lesson of living, and through the affections of a wonderful woman. It’s a film to fall in love with, to savor, to consider and to remember. It’s of tears and crying happily, of cherishing moments, of delicate wisdom and the bonds that we make that vivify us.

Mike Mills’ debut feature, Thumbsucker, is also amazing, filled with humanity and uniqueness. This film feels even more personal and uncategorizable. Ewan McGregor gives a kind and gentle performance as the protagonist, struggling to understand love and face mortality. Christopher Plumber is absolutely fantastic as Ewan’s father. He brings such soulfulness and jouissance to a his late-bloomer character. I’d like to see him receive Oscar attention for his supporting role. The relationship between these two is perfectly tender. Melanié Laurant, well I just have the biggest crush on her, even more so now (following Inglourious Basterds). She’s amazing. The writing and directing and editing and photography is all fresh and splendid. It doesn’t push, doesn’t try too hard, isn’t too showy. It just succeeds.

This movie is magic.