Little Miss Sunshine

A while back, I read an article about the state of American cinema. The author of the piece posited that, because Americans are not heading to the movies in the numbers they once did, Hollywood now relies on foreign markets to squeeze a profit out of their mediocre products. American movies, as a result, lack meaningful dialogue -- which increases the cost of subtitiling -- and lean heavily on special effects. Think Shrek.

To find a movie that appeals to anyone with a brain cell or two, Americans like me turn to foreign films, documentaries and the "indie" movie circuit. The low budget independent films are the cinema of yesteryear, engaging the audience with wacky characters and stimulating, whitty dialogue. Think Pulp Fiction.

Little Miss Sunshine is the latest gem of the indie smorgasbord. It is a hilarious story about the dysfunctional Hoover family's road trip from Albuquerque, New Mexico to Southern California to take their seven-year-old daughter to the Little Miss Sunshine beauty pageant. From the father who is a self-help speaker to the grandfather who snorts coke and chides the teenage grandson for being a virgin, it is a family that will make you cry laughing.

Go see this movie.