Willem Dafoe’s 96%-Rated Drama From 2017 Is Still A24’s Best Movie
Art really imitates life in this must-watch.
The name of A24 studio is familiar to every cinema lover, and you have definitely seen at least one of its movies. These include such gems as Lady Bird (2017), Midsommar (2019), Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022) and this year’s hit Civil War.
However, even in spite of the fact that all these movies were top-grossing sensations, they can be beaten by 2017’s drama you may have missed. It stars the accomplished industry’s giant, Willem Dafoe (The Lighthouse), who is no stranger to A24’s films.
The movie’s plot revolves around Moonee, a 6-year-old girl who lives with her unemployed mother Halley in a cheap motel in Florida. Their struggles not to become homeless and not to starve took place just near the Walt Disney World luxury resort.
While Halley is trying to make ends by doing sex work, Moonee is left alone as she peeps into the adult world, unaware of the never-ending joys kids get outside. The family is helped by the motel’s manager Bobby (played by Dafoe), but it’s clearly not enough.
This slice-of-life flick offers exploration of such painfully important themes as social inequality, motherhood, and poverty. Its images of the glamorous life at the resort are uniquely juxtaposed with the locals’ troubles to make it through unemployment.
You’ll enjoy it if you’re a fan of slow-paced dramas that give a lot of space for analysis, with many questions being raised. That’s why 2017’s movie is really reminiscent of such gems of the genre, as Little Miss Sunshine (2006) and American Honey (2016).
Besides, it’d be a perfect movie choice if you want to have a good cry. The performances of Dafoe, as well as the newcomers Bria Vinaite and Brooklynn Prince, will touch the strings of every picky cinephil and won’t obviously leave you indifferent.
Titled The Florida Project, this film deserves to be on your watchlist.
“This is the one that made me start seeking out other A24 films,” admits Redditor @troubleinpink.
It’s not the most action-packed movie of the studio at all, but it’s truly the one that feels real most of all.
Check out whether it’s so convincing or not, as The Florida Project is available for streaming on Netflix , Prime and Hulu .