Boyhood

This review may contain spoilers! This review has been requested by a reader and will be included in this years reviewed films.

This isn't a film that focusses upon a story so much as it's a film that masterfully captures life itself. I would give Boyhood a 7/10.

What this film provides is an exceptional glimpse into life and growing up, the big selling point of this film is that it was filmed over the course of twelve years and the cast grows up along with it. This film's strength isn't so much the story or any of the usual aspects of your day to day film but instead how it portrays the subtleties of how a person can change throughout their life and also the incredible unpredictability of life. The cinematography of this film is exceptional and indicates a director with an incredible vision; there's a lot to be said for how consistently inspired some of these shots are. The soundtrack for this film really goes hand in hand with the premise of this film; it's interesting to this soundtrack develop as the main character grows up.

Ellar Coltrane, who played Mason, makes for a really great protagonist in this film; Coltrane does a great job of portraying the development of his character throughout the years and his changing mental state. Lorelei Linklater, who played Samantha, makes for an interesting rebellious character in this film; her ever-growing abrasive attitude means she creates some good conflict throughout the story. Marco Perella, who played Professor Bill Welbrook, made for a rather dark father figure; his authoritarian and abusive attitude made him quite an antagonist in this film. Roland Ruiz, who played Enrique, made for quite a charming minor role in this film; Ruiz and Arquette's final scene together made for one of my favourite scenes of the film. Tom McTigue, who played Mr Turlington, was a really funny minor role in this film; his 'almost too serious' high school teacher made for an interesting scene and speech.

However the best performance came from Ethan Hawke, who played Dad. Hawke is a very charismatic performer, he makes for one of the most likeable members of the cast. I think there is a really good chemistry between Coltrane, Linklater and Hawke as a family and many of these scenes result in some of the most fun and natural scenes of the film. I loved a lot of Hawke's lines and would really say his line delivery made for some incredibly entertaining scenes.

The lack of plot in this film really causes this film to drag from time to time, I mean this whole thing is nearly three hours long and there's a lot of time jumps which cause some unavoidable pacing issues. The direction the main character took in his later teenage years created a role that started to feel unlikeable, suddenly he lost the charisma of a youth discovering himself and became a distant narcissist. The editing hindered the film even further when it came to the pacing, cutting was slow and allowed the film to really drag out.

Patricia Arquette, who played Mom, gave a really dry performance in this film; she had this constant presence throughout the film but never really became an engaging character. Libby Villari, who played Grandma, lacked screen presence in this film; Villari failed to connect with the kids and her banter with Hawke wasn't enough to make her stand out. Jamie Howard and Andrew Villarreal, who played Mindy and Randy, weren't particularly great child actors; these two never connected with Coltrane or Linklater and became boring minor roles. Brad Hawkins, who played Jim, was one of the most stereotypical characters within this film; his rather generic portrayal of angry stepdad seemed dismal after Perella's stunning performance earlier in the film. Jenni Tooley, Richard Andrew Jones and Karen Jones, who played Annie, Grandpa Cliff and Nana, were really hastily included into this film's casting in a rather jarring manner; because of this hasty introduction and the actors weak screen presence you forgot about these characters almost instantly. Zoe Graham, who played Sheena, was a strange actress to be cast for Coltrane's love interest; particularly because the two had absolutely no chemistry whatsoever. Richard Robichaux, who played Mason's Boss, felt like a very forced comedic relief character; his over the top humour felt out of place in a film like this.