A young actor’s stormy childhood and early adult years as he struggles to reconcile with his father and deal with his mental health.
Shia LaBeouf has been receiving huge early critical acclaim from his movies “The Peanut Butter Falcon” and “Honey Boy.” Everything I have heard from the former has been glowing but there was something special about “Honey Boy” innately. Shia not only stars in this film but also wrote it and that had me skeptical but boy was I wrong for not trusting in him.
Shia LaBeouf plays James Lort, father to Otis Lort (played by Noah Jupe and Lucas Hedges in his older years). The two have a difficult relationship as James lives off his son due to his early success in television and film. The Lorts go on an adventure of learning each other as different situations bring out different sides of them. I’ll start with the Otis Jort actors because we need time for Shia. Noah Jupe gives one of the most natural performances as a young actor and does a phenomenal job of creating a character that you not only empathize with but also feel how he arrived at his older self. Hedges isn’t given as much as the other two stars as we switch back and forth between his storyline. While the plot is great and he is great, his part of the narrative takes a back seat to his younger self. Now let’s get to Shia. This is honestly the best performance I have ever seen from him and that is saying a lot. His portrayal of James Lort is almost too raw (we know why) and nuanced to an extent where I don’t think it could emulate for a while. There are many times that you outright hate him but there is a surplus of moments where we feel how broken James is and just how damaged he is that you start to feel bad for him. Crazy thing enough, his performance’s greatness mirrors that of the greatness of the screenplay. The story is autobiographical to Shia’s and you feel the grittiness, raw, and natural emotion from the page to the screen. The moments aren’t over hyperbolic and also not too held back, it finds that perfect equilibrium.
I think the unsung hero of the film is director Alma Har’el. One thing I can applaud any filmmaker for is not being afraid to let the performances onscreen carry the emotion and not let music force-feed it in the background. Har’el opting for shaky-cam cinematography style gives this natural feeling to the film and I didn’t notice until the end of the runtime. The color choices not being too vibrant helps but the cool palette is still eye candy. The score is used sparingly but every time it comes on it pierces your heart. Lastly, the runtime is short and does not overstay its welcome. So my biggest applause of Har’el is her ability to use minimal film elements to still create an overwhelming film. Bravo!
So if it’s not clear, please go see this. Shia LaBeouf caps off a perfect year with his performance and screenplay and I would love to see him in the awards circuit. Hedges and Jupe bring great portrayals brought out with amazing direction from Alma Har’el. This is already one of my favorites of the year.
In select theaters Friday, November 22nd
