Boyhood is a film which is all about its idea. Director Richard Linklater tells a story which plays out over twelve years and does so by filming his movie over a period of twelve years. We are going to watch a boy grow up right before our eyes. You admire the ingenuity and certainly admire the passion everyone involved had to have to be able to see this project through. Linklater has crafted a film which is certainly unique. But uniqueness is not quite enough. The film also has to be entertaining and there Boyhood is very hit and miss. It's a great idea for a movie but you are left thinking that perhaps that idea could have been realized in more entertaining fashion.
The story is exceedingly simple. We're going to watch young six-year old Mason grow up. It's not an easy childhood, no smooth journey to adulthood here. There are many bumps along the way which each, in their own way, will ultimately play a part in what kind of man this boy becomes. When first we meet him Mason is a charming little boy. But his life is a bit of a mess. His parents are divorced, he and his sister live with their mother who struggles to make ends meet. Their father fades in and out of their lives. Big changes come when other men come into Mom's life. Not necessarily changes for the better it turns out. As Mason grows into a teen he gets involved in the sort of questionable behaviors teens do. What type of man will Mason be when he comes out the other end? That is what the movie is all about, the journey to adulthood, the growth along the way. In its own way it is a fascinating journey, one unlike we've seen in any movie before. But that journey does get bogged down at times. This film, just by its very nature, was always going to take its sweet time in telling its story. But moving things along a little more quickly, with a little more energy, surely would not have hurt. Too often in this movie there really is nothing going on. This idea would make for a great documentary, and the film often does have a documentary feel to it. As entertainment though the film sometimes struggles.
One of the obvious potential problems with this project is that when you cast a young boy you have no idea what kind of actor he is going to grow into over the course of twelve years. And, not surprisingly since this was his only real work as an actor, Ellar Coltrane did not grow into a very good performer. As the character grows the actor struggles, by the end Coltrane is exceedingly stiff, unnatural and unconvincing. The personality you would hope to see just isn't there. When he shares scenes with Patricia Arquette and Ethan Hawke, who play Mason's parents, the contrast is jarring. Coltrane sadly can't come close to matching these seasoned performers. Arquette and Hawke both do great work in this movie, Coltrane and other younger, unseasoned performers struggle to keep up. The movie starts with great promise, but for various reasons, loses its way now and again as Mason moves towards adulthood. Sometimes there are lulls where not enough interesting things are happening. Some of the things that do happen are uncomfortable to sit through, there are some raw, painful moments here. The film also beats you over the head with a political agenda which is completely uncalled for in this story. And the ending is a bit of a letdown. There's no grand finish. Arquette's character, in what seems a jarringly out of character moment after all the time we've spent with her, says it herself: "I just thought there would be more." Give Linklater credit for his unique idea but acknowledge that he did not pull it off quite as well as maybe he could have. Some things, like his grown-up lead's acting ability, really were out of his control. But Linklater clearly made missteps of his own along the way. Boyhood is a great idea for a film but not really a great film. It's a good film, a unique journey worth seeing. But you get the sense it could have been something more than what it ultimately turned out to be.
The story is exceedingly simple. We're going to watch young six-year old Mason grow up. It's not an easy childhood, no smooth journey to adulthood here. There are many bumps along the way which each, in their own way, will ultimately play a part in what kind of man this boy becomes. When first we meet him Mason is a charming little boy. But his life is a bit of a mess. His parents are divorced, he and his sister live with their mother who struggles to make ends meet. Their father fades in and out of their lives. Big changes come when other men come into Mom's life. Not necessarily changes for the better it turns out. As Mason grows into a teen he gets involved in the sort of questionable behaviors teens do. What type of man will Mason be when he comes out the other end? That is what the movie is all about, the journey to adulthood, the growth along the way. In its own way it is a fascinating journey, one unlike we've seen in any movie before. But that journey does get bogged down at times. This film, just by its very nature, was always going to take its sweet time in telling its story. But moving things along a little more quickly, with a little more energy, surely would not have hurt. Too often in this movie there really is nothing going on. This idea would make for a great documentary, and the film often does have a documentary feel to it. As entertainment though the film sometimes struggles.
One of the obvious potential problems with this project is that when you cast a young boy you have no idea what kind of actor he is going to grow into over the course of twelve years. And, not surprisingly since this was his only real work as an actor, Ellar Coltrane did not grow into a very good performer. As the character grows the actor struggles, by the end Coltrane is exceedingly stiff, unnatural and unconvincing. The personality you would hope to see just isn't there. When he shares scenes with Patricia Arquette and Ethan Hawke, who play Mason's parents, the contrast is jarring. Coltrane sadly can't come close to matching these seasoned performers. Arquette and Hawke both do great work in this movie, Coltrane and other younger, unseasoned performers struggle to keep up. The movie starts with great promise, but for various reasons, loses its way now and again as Mason moves towards adulthood. Sometimes there are lulls where not enough interesting things are happening. Some of the things that do happen are uncomfortable to sit through, there are some raw, painful moments here. The film also beats you over the head with a political agenda which is completely uncalled for in this story. And the ending is a bit of a letdown. There's no grand finish. Arquette's character, in what seems a jarringly out of character moment after all the time we've spent with her, says it herself: "I just thought there would be more." Give Linklater credit for his unique idea but acknowledge that he did not pull it off quite as well as maybe he could have. Some things, like his grown-up lead's acting ability, really were out of his control. But Linklater clearly made missteps of his own along the way. Boyhood is a great idea for a film but not really a great film. It's a good film, a unique journey worth seeing. But you get the sense it could have been something more than what it ultimately turned out to be.