Director: Alejandro Monteverde Starring: Emily Watson, Tom Wilkinson, Kevin James, Michael Rapaport, Jakob Salvati Writer: Alejandro monteverde, Pepe Portillo | 0.5/5 Little Boy It seems like since the inception of my page, I have made a habit of bringing down hate on films made, as I see it, by Christians for Christians. Let me state that it’s not the theology that I hate, but the self-glorification and ignorant judgement - two traits antithetical to the message of Jesus. Making movies is just one of the many things the religious group has failed to get right, along with songwriting, loving social media remarks, or holding a reality show that doesn’t scandalize all Christians and get canceled. It’s my displeasure to introduce a movie that follows in the same, self-righteous vein: Little Boy, the tale of a small boy who uses faith and magical powers to (quite literally) move a mountain. If it’s ham-fisted metaphorical sermonizing you like, this is your movie. So Pepper (AKA Little Boy) and his dad (Michael Rapaport) are BFF’s. They share a love for comic book magicians and imaginary adventures, fueled by the mouthful of a catchphrase, “Do you believe you can do this?” Obviously, this cannot last forever. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, WWII finally reaches the most sunny, picturesque American town you have ever see. Papa James is shipped overseas, while Pepper (Jakob Salvati) is left unprotected from the local bully and his dad, the local doctor/pervert. By the way, the bully’s dad is played by Kevin James…so, yeah. |
Everyone in the town is a one-dimensional stereotype. Worst of all is Pepper’s moody brother London (David Henrie). We know London is a bad guy because he drinks alcohol, the go-to sign in these faith-based movies that someone is a bad person. The most offensive characterization of all, though, is the film’s depiction of the Japanese. Out of all the horrendous dialogue from Monteverde and Pepe Portillo’s script, the only thing that rings (way too) true is the hate speech, another trademark of this new genre. So you cannot write a character that has more than one emotion, but you sure got that a hold on those scenes of racism and hatred. Nice.
The movie’s only Japanese character, Hashimoto (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa), exists solely as a moral obstacle for our lily white title character to hurdle, as if getting past racism is one of the most righteous acts of man. No way! Not being a racist is basic human decency and should be seen as a given. It’s rather telling that that “not being a racist” is the main message the movie has to offer. I’m going to pull a Kendrick Lamar and be “really really real” for a second: if a film has to try exceptionally hard to not be racist, then that film IS racist.
Not all of the performances are terrible. Acting veterans Tom Wilkinson, Emily Watson, and Tagawa both do what they can with the trite material. For the most part, though, the acting is insufferable. Most insufferable of all, and damaging to the film as a whole, is the performance of lead actor Jakob Salivati. Using his puppy dog eyes whenever he doesn’t have the acting muscles, Salvati gets by on his cuteness alone. If it’s even possible, Salvati’s cuteness becomes incredibly annoying. I literally cringed every time he raised his hands to move something with his faith-given magical powers.
Never ones for subtlety, the filmmakers of this genre really outdo themselves with Little Boy. To help sharpen his powers, Pepper begins by buying a literal mustard seed. By the film’s end, my forehead was sore from how many times I slapped it. Will they ever get the art of filmmaking right? My opinion? Don’t hold your breath.
(Available on iTunes)
The movie’s only Japanese character, Hashimoto (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa), exists solely as a moral obstacle for our lily white title character to hurdle, as if getting past racism is one of the most righteous acts of man. No way! Not being a racist is basic human decency and should be seen as a given. It’s rather telling that that “not being a racist” is the main message the movie has to offer. I’m going to pull a Kendrick Lamar and be “really really real” for a second: if a film has to try exceptionally hard to not be racist, then that film IS racist.
Not all of the performances are terrible. Acting veterans Tom Wilkinson, Emily Watson, and Tagawa both do what they can with the trite material. For the most part, though, the acting is insufferable. Most insufferable of all, and damaging to the film as a whole, is the performance of lead actor Jakob Salivati. Using his puppy dog eyes whenever he doesn’t have the acting muscles, Salvati gets by on his cuteness alone. If it’s even possible, Salvati’s cuteness becomes incredibly annoying. I literally cringed every time he raised his hands to move something with his faith-given magical powers.
Never ones for subtlety, the filmmakers of this genre really outdo themselves with Little Boy. To help sharpen his powers, Pepper begins by buying a literal mustard seed. By the film’s end, my forehead was sore from how many times I slapped it. Will they ever get the art of filmmaking right? My opinion? Don’t hold your breath.
(Available on iTunes)