H is for Happiness

A quirky beautifully made movie that doesn't follow the cookie cutter formula of most YA movies. An Aussie triumph.

I seldom enjoy Australian films. This one was quite decent. It's certainly not a 9/10 or 10/10 like the other reviews suggest, but I also didn't regret watching it.

Candice Phee is an outspoken 13 year old who gets ridiculed by the rest of the class especially mean girl Jen Marshall. Despite her aggressive happiness, her home life is dysfunctional. Her mother is depressed after the death of Candice's baby sister three years earlier. Her father is angry at his rich brother whom he believes to have stolen his great idea. New kid Douglas Benson believes that he's from another dimension and falls for Candice right away. Their wonky-eyed teacher assigns the class project Life as an Alphabet.

This is cute. I don't recognize any of the actors although Emma Booth seems familiar. The kids are newcomers. Daisy Axon has the eagerness even if she's unpolished. The acting is generally fine with good sincerity. The story is a little over-stuffed. It seems every character has a story in this movie. This is cute, sweet, and sincere. The filmmaking is good. With so many things going on, the emotional arc gets a bit muddled but the sweetness is never far away. That has a lot to do with little Daisy.

It's a new kind of Parent Trap! Candice does not fit in with the other kids, she's very literal and loves school. People call her odd. Douglas is also odd. Meeting him inspires her to try something miraculous- to reunite her grieving family and get her parents back together. A huge adventure that starts with meeting the new kid and getting a new homework assignment! This is a cute family comedy!

Parents should know that there is a family death that's central to the storyline as well as a lot of bullying around special needs. For more parent info, check out our full review on down the hobbit hole blog dot com. Based on the popular Australian YA Book- My Life as an Alphabet (released in the US as The Categorical Universe of Candice Phee). It's a great movie/book combo for 10+! A dramedy with a lot of heart!

This is a hypothetical kind of feature film. The story is not too great but has very interesting and funny character that carry to entire story along. There is a cultural mix which is shown in the classroom sequences, a kid with the orange turban is shown as Punjabi but he is not wearing it properly. Major mistake on that. The idea and the concept is great. A small girl tried to fix the family issues and her story amidst all these situations is really a delight to watch but as some point it looked like an exaggerated version. Anyways, can watch for a change of mood.