The Florida Project

Director: Sean Baker.
Cast: Willem Dafoe, Brooklynn Prince, Bria Vinaite.
Moonee is a rebellious and care-free girl living with her young mother Halley at the Magic Castle, a motel in the vicinity of Disneyworld in Florida. Moonee spends her days running around wildly with her friends and causing mayhem.
The world of magic is just there, a stone’s throw away, and yet the children of the motel never get to set foot in it. They make and live in their own fairy tale world.
The film follows the day to day life of the inhabitants of the Magic Castle as they fill their time and try to make the best of a bad situation: poverty. The story is told through the point of view of a child and therefore poverty is not portrayed as a terrible thing – to her it doesn’t make much difference.
Close to the end of the film, the reality of the world that she lives in slowly starts to take shape and, in the end, she is forced to deal with the harsh consequences of their poverty.
‘The Florida Project’ is perfect in it’s simplicity. Sean Baker has really delivered a seemly-effortless portrayal of US poverty, a topic that we cinema-goers rarely see brought to life on the big screen in such a realistic way.
The film is beautifully shot. The colourful buildings and sunny skies strongly contrast with the poverty the characters live in. ‘The Florida Project’ is a happy story about an unhappy situation.
But what is really at the heart of this film is Moonee and her perception of her world and what is going on around her. ‘The Florida Project’ perfectly portrays children’s innocence and how to them life is just great fun and an adventure and that they are usually unaware of events unfolding around them that will contribute to shape their future lives.
There is something incredibly captivating about watching first time actors perform – they give it their all. Both Brooklynn Prince and Bria Vinaite, who play young mother Halley and free-spirited daughter Moonee, were both first time actresses and their performances were truly inspired and realistic.
On the other hand, veteran Willem Dafoe delivers one of his best performances in recent years as concerned and caring motel manager Bobby. His captivating and textured performance in ‘The Florida Project’ has earned him nominations for Best Supporting Actor at all major Awards.
It is a shame that this wonderful and honest film hasn’t received more recognition because it is a rare thing – a true cinematic gem.
> Naomi Round