Success can be hampered only by a lack of imagination. Director Sean Baker has proven this time and time again, first with his 2015 film "Tangerine," then again in his 2016 short film "Snowbird," both of which he shot exclusively on an iPhone. And now he shows this statement true with "The Florida Project," a story of the daily lives of impoverished children who live in a motel.
Baker says that the inspiration for his story came from a real-life event: he witnessed a school bus drop children off at a motel in Florida and simply wondered, "What are they doing there?"
It's that notion that makes "The Florida Project" so magical; the idea that these are normal people, randomly selected out of the thousands that pass through our periphery every day, and for two hours we have set a magnifying glass on them so we may better examine the grit and realism of their lives.
I find myself people-watching now, wondering how Sean Baker would direct a movie of their day-to-day activities and struggles. The movie functions as an episodic, showing the various hijinks that the children Moonee (Brooklynn Prince), Scooty (Christopher Rivera), and Jancey (Valeria Cotto) get into on a daily basis.
Their stomping ground is The Magic Castle, a cheap motel stranded in what might as well the wastelands of Florida. The motel is run by Bobby (Willem Dafoe), the manager and protector of the premises. The story is as much about him as it is the children, as we grow familiar with his day-to-day routine.
Some of the most memorable scenes feature him at the center, whether he is chasing away dangerous strangers and cranes, or growing increasingly exasperated by the kids' antics.
The theme of imagination lies at the center. These children have nothing but their minds to fill their time during summer vacation. The other characters show their ingenuity as well. Moonee's mother Halley (Bria Vinaite) resorts to increasingly cunning ploys to make ends meet. The struggles of adults seem to exist in a world separate from the children, as they naively go about their adventures, yet the tone remains consistent despite this.
If the movie has something to say about the issues of rampant poverty surrounding such a magical place as Disney World, it would rather let you witness and discover it for yourself. The movie is endearingly charming, a marvelous look at childhood and innocence.
To say that the movie is just about children living in a motel sells it short. It's more compelling to say that it is about sharing ice cream with your friends. It's about dancing in the rain with your mother. It's about wanting to drop everything and take your best friend to Disney World when they're feeling sad.
The movie truly must be experienced as a whole. It is full of life and childlike wonder. It is a movie that lets you enter another's life for a short while, one that can change your perspective for the better.
