I take no pleasure in tearing down a documentary that so obviously benefited everyone involved and could substantially promote awareness. But Fridrik Thor Fridriksson’s “The Sunshine Boy,” about one mother’s exploration of autism, its effects and her intention to help her own developmentally challenged son, simply doesn’t hold up as good cinema. Fridriksson is from Iceland, and that being the case, he’s enlisted the alien choral wails of Sigur Ros (and the groan-inducing obviousness of Bjork’s “Human Behavior”) to flood through the soundtrack and accompany overwrought scenes of a family traversing the gorgeous Icelandic countryside, peeking into caves and down over
cliffs at the abyss of darkness below, heavy-handedly suggesting the family’s own uncertain future. The artifice in moments like these is only enforced by the filmmaker’s decision to overdub the aforementioned mother, Margaret, with the voice of Kate Winslet, even as Margaret travels to the United States and clearly engages in English language conversations. This is in keeping with Fredriksson’s decision to have Winslet provide a narration, also a dubious choice since said narration is scripted from Margaret’s perspective. All this is in the service of bringing in a larger audience, as the director put it, and though that’s understandable, it does give the film an awkward vibe, as it essentially lacks Margaret’s personality, and thus her journey is harder to engage with. Also, don’t forget that this is a documentary; bringing in the big numbers is an unlikely goal no matter how many Academy Award winning voices you recruit – at least unless the film being made has to do with polar bears or penguins or something. [C+]- Sam C. Mac
TIFF Review: ‘The Sunshine Boy’
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Although this film's music may not be beautiful to some ears, to families with "severely" autistic children it is the most beautiful music ever.
It has been far too long that these children/adults with autism(non-verbal or limited verbally) have been cast off as "in their own world" or "low functioning".
My son, 14 years old, now communicates to the world through pointng to letters and although he could be angry with those who misunderstand and treat him with no dignity, he is compassionate.
I once asked what was the one thing he most wanted to say during his 10 years of non-communication, and he said, "I am listening." It broke my heart. When I asked about how he feels when people treat him as a person with no cognition, he pointed, "Mom, I learned to forgive a long time ago."
For these children and their families, it is imortant that the message in THE SUNSHINE BOY gets out … these children/adults are not mentally retarded (as they are often diagnosed) but instead have not been given the correct means to communicate their knowlege.
Thank you to the makers of The Sunshine Boy for liberating this class of HUMAN BEINGS.
As the mother of an autistic son, I applaud the work of The Sunshine Boy and all that it presents to the world. While it is unique in its musical choice and picturesque setting, so are each and every child with autism. I found the movie not only visually stimulating with the setting but also enriching with the uniqueness of the musical accompaniment – it all added to the journey. (I now am a fan both of the musicians.)
Our son has benefited from RPM, the life's work of Soma (featured in the film). He is now 12, mainstreamed, and planning his future. To most you'd think such things were impossible feats. But thanks to RPM, and to The Sunshine Boy, the world will now know differently. When our son was finally able to communicate, I asked about his life prior – to which he responded "life had no hope, now I only have hope." He has thrived in a community that sees his potential and not his limitations. Which is the essence of each of us – reaching our potentials. Thank you to the crew of The Sunshine Boy, and all involved. You will no doubt give hope to many people.
This film was really a term of endearment by the film makers focus on a family who's intention seems to express to it's viewers that despite the incredible struggles that children, adolescents as well as adults with autism face on a daily ,to not fall prey to the misconceptions about autism that we see and hear much to often in the media . The message seemed to be loud and clear that autism does not mean a life with no meaning or hope but one of endless possibilities.There were several poignant moments in this film that included appearances from Temple Grandin,and notably Soma Mukhopadhyay (Educator and creator of the Rapid Prompting Method) Soma is the mother of the well known author Tito Mukhopadhyay, who is autistic and a published poet and author. Both highly respected for their contributions to the autism community. This film's message and that is matters more than the music chosen for the soundtrack.
I am dying to see this film. How did everyone get a sneak peak??