LITTLE BOY – The Review

So, what’s the cure for overloading on the all-depressing news (now bombarding you with 24-hour cable channels along with the “interweb”)? Well, a time machine would be great. Imagine pulling the lever on Rod Taylor’s 1960 model or Doc Brown’s DeLorean-based 1985 sweet ride (thirty years, can’t be!). Too bad they don’t exist, but buying a ticket at the multiplex can whisk you away for a couple of hours or so, right? The feel-good nostalgia flick has become almost as popular a genre as the haunted house spook show or the sports “underdog” story. The 1940’s have proved a most popular destination for, well over forty years (remember SUMMER OF 42 back in 71′?). It’s been the setting for a very recent Oscar winner, THE IMITATION GAME, and even a big superhero blockbuster with CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER. Hey, we just visited it two weeks ago in the flashback subplot of THE LONGEST RIDE. So, it’s time again to polish up those big sedans, slick back your hair, and take a very sentimental journey alongside LITTLE BOY.

The warm, folksy narrator introduces us to the sleepy coastal town of O’Hara, CA circa 1940, home of the Busbees. The voice belongs to the youngest member of said family Pepper (Jakob Salvati), a pre-teen whose growth pattern seems to have stalled out at just over three feet, earning him the derogatory moniker (the most genteel nickname of many) of “Little Boy”. Happily he forms a close bond with his poppa (Michael Rappaport), the owner operator of the local garage along with his college age son London (David Henri), and the two share a love of fantasy and adventure, particularly the exploits of real-life magician and star of comic books and movie serials Ben-Eagle (Ben Chaplin). Real world events intrude on their idyllic life when the US enters World War II. To his great frustration, London is labeled 4-F and rejected for service (darn flat feet!) and the elder Busbee is called up. Pepper is devastated, but tries to be strong for his mother (Emily Watson). And then a military rep delivers bombshell news: Poppa is missing after a battle on an Axis-held Pacific island. Is he captured, or….? Pepper’s spirits are lifted by a live appearance of Ben-Eagle at the local movie house. After joining his hero on stage, Pepper believes he has the power to move objects with his mind. But offstage, back home, the gift is gone. After hearing a sermon about how “faith can move mountains”, Pepper implores his priest, Father Oliver (Tom Wilkinson) to help him strengthen his faith. The padre produces a pre-printed list of good works and deeds such as “Feed the hungry” and jots down an addition, “Befriend Hashimoto”. This refers to a widowed Japanese-American middle-aged man (Cary Hiroyuki Tagawa) who has been harassed and shunned by the locals after the Pearl Harbor bombing. And so, Pepper begins to check off the list in hopes of ending the war and reuniting with his beloved father.

This tale is told mostly through the eyes of its title character. Happily the film makers were fortunate to find Salvati, who brings a sweet,wide-eyed innocence to Pepper Busbee without resorting to heavy-handed mugging or histrionics (a scene of loss in the final minutes veers close, but it may be those behind the camera more at fault). It’s easy to root for the fella’, even as he gets off on the wrong foot with Hashimoto (the old “it takes a village”). Henri handles the more complex role of the oldest sibling with more subtlety than the script provides. His anger and guilt often come to a boiling point as he struggles to do what he thinks is required as the man of the house. We can see the questioning in his eyes as he’s nudged into violence by Ted Levine (yup, Buffalo Bill himself) as town elder Sam who seethes with rage that masks his heartbreak. As for the other screen vets, Rappaport projects a real tenderness as the ultimate doting daddy, while Watson has much of that same warmth, tempered with a steely determination to keep the home fires burning and present a stoic facade as she is consumed with concern over the fate of her spouse. Pepper’s even got a couple of surrogate grandpas’ in Father Oliver and Hashimoto. Wilkinson is a kindly taskmaster, who hopes to inspire the lad, who in turn may be an example to the town. Tagawa is another teacher for the boy who helps ease the pain of family loss for the elder. We can see the twinkle in his eyes at Pepper’s antics. And speaking of antics, Kevin James (he’s next door at the multiplex as that “mall cop”), provides some laughs as the town MD, Dr. Fox no less, who makes clumsy passes at Momma B while his hulking son leads the pack of Pepper’s grade school tormentors.

A leisurely pace is maintained through most of the story by director Alejandro Monteverde with O’Hare seeming to be Mayberry-by-the-sea that’s filled with lovable eccentrics in often kooky vintage attire (wild hats for everybody!). The art directors work hard to establish the period, even recreating Norman Rockwell imagery (but the films listed on the town theatre marquee do bounce between current and dated). But the place isn’t all “sweetness and light” thanks to the script (from the director and Pepe Portillo). Intolerance does raise its ugly head with most of the town treating Hashimoto as a pariah (Pepper even sees a propaganda cartoon). Still, the script does seem to meander, often lurching from the big conflict scene to gag to heart-tugger making the feature resemble a “Hallmark-style” straight to cable TV movie. As mentioned earlier, the film pummels at the heart-strings in its last moments as Pepper deals with loss in a sequence that feels as though it will never end. It’s not helped by a music score that telegraphs every emotion. The film’s being marketed to “faith-based” audiences, so some of the views espoused by Hashimoto are a tad surprising as he’s always sympathetic. But even with the bits of bigotry, the film’s tone is too syrupy with a finale that seems contrived and unsatisfying. The target audiences will no doubt find the movie’s message soothing, but discerning viewers may tire of the  lazy gooey charms of LITTLE BOY.

2 Out of 4