3/10

“The size of the being isn’t important when the boy can move mountains”. ‘Little Boy’ is a film about an adventurous boy (Jakob Salvati) who is willing to do whatever it takes to bring his dad (Michael Rappaport) home from World War II alive. He sets off on a mission at home in Southern California to take the steps to build his faith for such a powerful wish. ‘Little Boy’ is the latest in religious propaganda, but something different makes this film stick out. It doesn’t appeal to atheists because of the obvious. It’s endless tirades about faith and how it’s used in a manipulative nature to bring the father home. But on the same coin, the film doesn’t appeal to the religious moviegoer because the movie casts faith as a series of coincidences. For instance, the boy moves a bottle once and it’s because it’s part of a magician’s show with all the hidden magnets and strings. Then, he moves another bottle, but it’s moved because the priest that the boy is talking to moved it for him. His excuse is that the boy inspired him to move the bottle. The biggest feat of strength comes when the boy moves a mountain in the town center. The next scene shows that a 4.2 earthquake hit California that day. So nothing that this boy is doing is anything special, so why should we care? Most will tell you because it’s a heartwarming film about the meanings of family. I figured that was true as well when i watched the trailer, but i got a totally different film experience. The movie is only remotely about bringing the father home, and instead focuses on a racist wild card to entertain us for the better part of an hour. Since the townsmen were shipped to Japan, everyone now hates the one Japanese man living in the town who befriends the boy. The boy makes a list on what will strengthen his faith, but it always feels like he is doing it for his own selfish wishes. This is a problem because the movie acts as a insomnia curing Sunday school lesson. It all just doesn’t mix well with the film, and the father aspect disappears for huge chunks of the movie. The film does have a pretty reputable cast, but most of them feel like they don’t want to be there. Emily Watson has the emotions of Ben Stein asking where Mr Bueller is. Michael Rappaport is in the film for ten minutes. Ted Levine is a racist stereotype that we never believe comes from any deep emotional place except the paper that the lines are printed on. Tom Wilkinson is the only decent performance, but i feel so bad that this guy has had to act in films like this and the tasteless ‘Unfinished Business’, this year. The movie looks and feels like a Hallmark Channel movie, and it definitely belongs there. The town even for that age looks very cardboard. We are given the feeling that it’s a racist pleasantville, and not one that you would want to spend any time (let alone 97 minutes) in. This is ’60 and over’ cinema at it’s best. There is nothing here for even the strongest of religious following. It’s not the worst film i have seen in that genre, but it is the most pointless. The ending took the film down a whole point for me. For a while, the movie nearly accomplished a string of unpredictable events that was at least worth a watch. The final ten minutes decided to ruin any of that decent ground by giving us the same ending that we have seen in these war films 1,354 times. Uninspiring, Unenjoyable, Unfaithful…..’Little Boy’ in a sentence as short as it’s main character.