Sunlight Jr.

I know both Naomi Watts and Matt Dillon look young for their age, but the fact is when this movie was made, in 2013, Matt is close to 50 and Naomi is in her mid-40's! I liked this movie, but I had a real problem with the ages of the actors! Only a couple in their 20's, 30's at the latest, would have these problems!! What were the writers thinking?? I mean, an unplanned pregnancy at her age?? And such financial difficulties?? Homelessness? Living with her Mother? At their age?? Ridiculous! Even with him being disabled. And speaking of that, SURELY he'd be getting a little more money for his disability. I don't know. I love these actors, so I liked the movie for that reason. But their ages really threw me off!!

Sometimes a movie is just to darn glum for its own good, an example that could be tailor made for Sherrybaby director Laurie Collyer's raw and in the end mediocre 2013 effort Sunlight Jr. The movie is a fine showcase for the well known talents of Naomi Watts and the arguable lesser recognized talents of Matt Dillon and also a warning bell that Norman Reedus needs to find himself a new agent faster than he can say "typecast".

The story of Sunlight Jr. is really bare bones stuff with Collyer seemingly more worried about what depressing thing will happen to these people next rather than creating something that really affects the viewer. Many scenarios in the picture could hit home whether it be substance abuse, relationships, domestic violence or a raft of other tough issues but the film doesn't seem to know what it's saying and the arc struggles for it. We don't really get why a kind person like Melissa loves an obvious drunk like Richie or why she would care for a redneck drug dealing fiend in the form of Justin and it makes her decisions through the journey harder to latch onto which is a shame as Watts again delivers here.

Creating a fine name for herself over many years now Watts must of taken a significant pay cut to appear in such a picture as this and it's commendable that she would tackle a smaller scale picture that would only seem to exist to win awards for it's actors. Melissa is a fine piece of acting by Watts that is somewhat matched by Dillon while poor old Reedus must be wondering if he will ever get a non Daryl role now. Justin is such an overblown and overplayed part by Reedus that the films believability suffers for it and it's a shame he was allowed to go so OTT, same could also be said for the films atrocious guitar tinged soundtrack.

Without another fine turn from Watts this film would of been a real lost cause but thanks to her it remains watchable but highly forgettable. If a film wants to be glum it needs to overcome this with high quality elements and everything else here around Watts just isn't up to scratch leaving the viewer with not much to care for and not much reason to suggest to anyone that this trip into sorrow is worth enduring.

2 packs of donuts out of 5

It's hard to really distinguish the very good indie flicks from the not-so-very-good ones, and that's because not many people see many of them, not many notices, not many reviews out there for others to see and make a judgment as to if they want to watch a certain flick because of reviews (or not). In that case, this film isn't bad, but I may not totally recommend it either. The performances are solid but nothing extraordinary, certainly not acting that would stand as some of the best of the year. Watts has done this certain thing before and better, and she has some iffy moments here. Matt Dillon may actually be stronger and more consistent, but yeah, not much stretch as an actor the role called for. It's not really "bad" though.

Given the mixed reviews, I opted to watch this film to determine if it was worth it for myself. In short, it was a decent film (not outstanding but not tough to get through) however, it was slow moving. The complexity was lacking but then again, this was intentional to show the true nature of the life of poverty being portrayed. The chemistry between Naomi and Matt was pretty good and the story completely believable. You can't helped but be depressed the entire movie given there is really nothing positive that happens. If you are looking for a stimulating and dynamic movie to watch, do not opt for this one as you will become frustrated. This is a movie for someone interested in observing the reality of poverty of a young couple and the struggles they go through. Take it for what it is!

Certainly not an uplifting movie, but ironically, I found it to be refreshingly real and believable, at least as far as the world that I live in. No special effects, no affluent people, and nothing gratuitous ~ just real life. Good, gritty performances by all the characters. I relate to every single problem Melissa has to deal with, which is rare for me and probably made me biased. I think all rich people should watch this movie to understand what real problems are. This is a genuine portrait of what it's like out here for people who are just trying to get by, day to day. The cycle of poverty is hard to break and I believe this movie reflects the lives of many in our country today.