Boyhood

Boyhood

Starring Ellar Coltrane, Patricia Arquette, Ethan Hawke, Lorelei Linklater

Directed by Richard Linklater

Synopsis:
"Boyhood" is a tale of Mason (Ellar Coltrane), his sister Samantha (Lorelei Linklater), their divorced Mom (Patricia Arquette) and visiting Dad (Ethan Hawke) as they span a timeframe of twelve years from when Mason was six to eighteen, and how each year affects Mason and the family. 

Review:
Grand in scale, but extremely simple and relateable in scope, "Boyhood" is Richard Linklater's labor of love, as he spent twelve years putting together the lives of Mason and his family, following their hopes, dreams, loves and losses and how they dealt with life's ups and downs along the way.

There isn't much to talk about concerning the plot because, well, there really wasn't any.  There was no real point to the film, no beginning and no conclusion, nothing to wrap everything up because there was nothing to wrap.  It was just a simple story of a boy growing up in a separated home, and how he dealt with everything around him.  From drunken abusive step-fathers to dealing with his mother not having a job to getting used to his dad's re-marriage and everything in between, "Boyhood" is just a simple tale of a modern nuclear family. 

The film has an expansive runtime of 2 hours 45 minutes, so if you want to see it you better be prepared to sit through that long of a film without explosions, death, nudity or a "satisfactory" ending.  When you're prepared to, you'll see a film that, even though it's incredibly simplistic, is still a moving and stirring experience that you won't soon forget, and will leave you questioning your own life and how to really seize every moment given to you.

Newcomer Ellar Coltrane got to grow up on screen, and we got to see him grow up as well.  Starting the film as an innocent six-year-old, we see how life affects him and, as he grows up and goes through the normal teenage rebellion, we also see how his view of the world shapes his desires and dreams, and ultimately leads him to college in search of his own identity. 

Ethan Hawke gives a brilliant performance as the musician father that we also see grow up, from a bum with no job to a family man with a new wife and young child, working in the business field and being a true grown-up.  Patricia Arquette has been earning critical acclaim for her portrayal as a single mother who goes through abusive marriages, jobs and life at a dizzying pace, culminating in a downright tear-jerker moment when she discovers that life has passed her by, and the only thing left to look forward to is her own death.  One of her best performances ever, and easily an Oscar-winning role.

Summary:
A simple film, told in grand fashion, that will leave you mesmerized.

My Rating: A