Marvelous and the Black Hole

I think someone categorized this movie's genre wrong. It's not a comedy, it's a comedy family drama. Emphasize on drama. The start was pretty slow, grim and agonizing. It's totally unlikable. So if you want to see the good parts, you're gonna have to grin and bear through that part of the movie. But it's totally worth it, cause even if it's heartbreaking at first, the ending is not. This movie is a lot like love. You can't get the good parts without going through the bad ones as well.

Forget the old showbiz adage about never working with kids or animals. For this charming little film, veteran performer Rhea Perlman forms a perfect team with rubber-faced newcomer (and future star) Miya Cech. The end result is a coming of age story that holds the attention.

Ignore the negative reviews. This is well-acted and intimate coming-of-age film about a 13 year old girl's journey of love, loss and forgiveness. If you're in the mood for something slower paced but quirky, this is for you. Miya Cech and Rhea have real chemistry in their scenes together. It's a nice anecdote to the sometimes cynical age we live in!

Mrs. Shullivan and I really enjoyed this story line about the family dynamics that evolves around a teenage girl named Sammy (Miya Cech) who recently lost her mother. Sammy is being raised by her hard working widower father Angus (Leonardo Nam) and the responsibility of monitoring what the troubled teen Sammy is doing is relegated to her older sister Patricia (Kannon). Sammy's father is trying to move on with his life after losing his wife and the mother of his two (2) daughters six (6) months earlier so he has developed a serious relationship with a new female companion that his two (2) daughters expressive faces reflect their disapproval of.

Sammy is taking the loss of her mother, and her fathers new female companion with a rebellious attitude that lands her in her fathers dog house. Sammy is told to attend a small business school and if she refuses her fathers initial direction he has threatened to send her away to a disciplinary summer camp for challenging teens.

As troubled teens with a bad attitude go, Sammy was lucky enough to accidentally meet up with a quirky middle aged female magician who enjoys doing magic shows for children. We the audience see a gradual change in Sammy's bad behaviour as she grows to like spending time with Margot the Magician (Rhea Perlman) and her focus on the negative gradually transitions into a focus on learning magic.

But the real magic is the transition between Sammy and her family including Angus's female companion Marianne (Paulina Lule) as she realizes through the relationship she has developed with Margot the magician that acceptance of her mothers death is not the end of the world but the beginning of a new life and new way of family living.

This is a heart warming story of family and (new) friends relationships, and the magic is the story and the entire cast's performances. I give this under rated film a superb 9 out of 10 IMDb rating.

Marvelous and the Black Hole is adorable. A teenage delinquent teams up with a surly children's party magician to navigate her dysfunctional family and inner demons. Miya Cech and Rhea Perlman make a great duo. The story is very simple and easy to follow. This is a casual watch that young teens will fall for. The focus on the childlike nature is good and works well for the story. Sometimes it felt a little too childish, especially towards the end when it deals with heavier subjects. The tone could've been worked out a bit better, but it's still fun. This feels like something that will go to Netflix for people of all ages to enjoy.