LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE. More than a Family [REVIEW]

While watching Little Miss Sunshine, it is hard not to smile. The brilliant directors, Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, ensured that the audience experiences emotions alongside the characters. The film begins with short glimpses of the characters’ everyday lives, showing them in their natural surroundings. This allows the viewer to subconsciously get to know the characters and their roles within the family. This is not the only way the camera manipulates our emotions. Close-ups of the actors’ faces and aesthetic contrasts (especially noticeable during the beauty pageant, when Olive is juxtaposed with exaggerated, over-the-top girls) make the audience feel the characters’ emotions, both painful and joyful.

Just like in a real family, each member plays their role. The film also presents serious problems that the characters try to hide to maintain a sense of family unity. For example: Edwin plays the role of Olive’s mentor, but behind this façade, he is a drug addict and a crude man. Richard attempts to lead the family, but his complexes and professional problems make this difficult. Sheryl takes care of everyone while ignoring the issues in her marriage. And of course, Frank provides support to the family members while being deeply immersed in depression himself. Each family member sacrifices their personal struggles for the greater good. In this film, the “greater good” is Olive, who is the apple of the family’s eye.

This dynamic is best illustrated in the scene where Dwayne’s world falls apart after learning about his color blindness. The shot uses two planes, separating Dwayne from the rest of the family. At that moment, Olive bridges the two planes by approaching her brother to show her support. Distraught, Dwayne quickly pulls himself together and decides to continue the journey to please his younger sister. This situation confirms that the family functions as a single organism, with each element working in harmony with the others. The film suggests that one does not need to be perfect to be needed—a thesis beautifully reflected in several scenes with the van, which requires many hands to push it to start.

Little Miss Sunshine is an excellent example of a road movie, a genre in which the plot centers on the characters’ journey from point A to point B. Often, this journey takes on a metaphorical meaning of internal transformation. The family’s goal is to fulfill Olive’s dream by taking her to a beauty pageant. They had no idea how exaggerated and demanding the competition would be. Upon arrival, the contrast between Olive and the other contestants is striking. Olive does not fit the stereotypical “Little Miss” image—she has a natural physique, wears no makeup, and does not force a smile. In contrast, the other contestants have heavy makeup, unusual hairstyles, and over-sexualized outfits intended for adult women. The girls’ performances also differ greatly from Olive’s dance. Their routines often include elements of eroticization and are clearly orchestrated by their parents. Olive’s dance emphasizes her innocence; she does not understand the sexualization dominating the pageant—dance is merely play for her. The pageant sequence highlights the absurd beauty standards imposed on children and the parents who, instead of supporting their children, project their unfulfilled ambitions onto them.

The film includes rare references to writers Marcel Proust and Friedrich Nietzsche. Two characters mention them: Frank claims to be “the best American expert on Proust,” and Dwayne is fascinated by Nietzsche’s philosophy. The ideologies of both thinkers are reflected in the characters’ personalities and behaviors. Frank, in a conversation with Dwayne, confesses that the most important moments in life are those of suffering, because they shape us—echoing Proust’s focus on memory, melancholy, time, and suffering as sources of deep self-understanding. Dwayne manifests nihilism and rebellion against the world through hanging a Nietzsche poster, remaining silent, or wearing clothing with slogans expressing his disappointment with the world (a shirt reading “Jesus Was Wrong”). His silence is a form of self-discipline and rejection of that world—a stance Nietzsche supports in Thus Spoke Zarathustra, which presents the idea of the Übermensch. This is the book Dwayne reads at the beginning of the film.

The relationship between Dwayne and Frank in Little Miss Sunshine is exceptional. It begins to blossom only after they arrive at the pageant, where they decide to go to the sea together. These two characters embody the ideas they represent: Dwayne says he would rather skip all those years to finally pursue his dreams, while Frank responds that the years of suffering are the most important. Dwayne represents Nietzschean striving toward the future, while Frank engages in Proustian contemplation of the past.

Little Miss Sunshine is certainly one of those films that lift your spirits. Warm colors and an even warmer storyline provide comfort on even the gloomiest day. At first glance, it may seem like a simple bittersweet comedy, but upon deeper reflection, the artistic depth of the film becomes apparent.