Kajillionaire (2020)- BFI London Film Festival 2020

Review

104min

Genre:       Comedy, Crime, Drama

Director:     Miranda July

Cast:         Evan Rachel Wood, Gina Rodriguez, Richard Jenkins…and more

Writers:     Miranda July

-Synopsis-

The curious life of scrounging a living on the streets of Los Angeles is thrown into turmoil for a family of con artists and petty thieves when a stranger enters the picture and their schemes, as she ingratiates herself with this bizarre trio and upends the exploitative family unit when the odd but resourceful daughter begins to get a taste for a childhood she never had, and the parents begin to worry about their meal ticket.

Nobody could accuse American indie filmmaker Miranda July of waiting around for her opportunities, having written and directed her own work for as long as she’s been acting in it, and for others. And if she was looking for quirky dysfunctional grifter movie families as inspiration for her third feature as writer/director, there certainly isn’t a shortage from which to choose; from New Wave European film to more recent Hollywood fare like ‘Curly Sue’ and ‘Matchstick Men’, all the way to Japanese cinema and Hirokazu Koreeda’s ‘Shoplifters’, not to mention a certain recent Korean Oscar-winner. But with ‘Kajillionaire’ the Vermont native adds her own idiosyncrasies and lack of judgement to the tradition, creating a droll but poignant tale of parenting, and an oddball story neglect, human connection, and emancipation on the streets of the ‘City of Angels’.

Evan Rachel Wood stars as introverted and socially awkward twenty-something forger, hustler and petty thief ‘Old Dolio’, scratching a living on the streets of L.A. with her unaffectionate, neglectful grifter parents ‘Robert’ (Richard Jenkins) and ‘Theresa’ (Debra Winger), a quirky flawed family surviving on the fringes of society by getting what they can when they can. But their dysfunctional dynamic is upended when friendly extroverted stranger ‘Melanie’ (Gina Rodriguez) enters their lives, becoming a part of their schemes while drawing the affections of Old Dolio’s parents, exposing their many shortcomings and opening the young woman’s eyes to a lost childhood and a world beyond the confines of her exploitative arrangement—threating to unveil real human connection for the first time.

At glance there’s no doubt that quirks and idiosyncrasies are the name of the game for Miranda July when it comes to her characters here, even flirting with Charlie Kaufman, Wes Anderson and Jared Hess levels of comedic oddball personas, particularly when it comes the story’s lynchpin figure so intriguingly brought to life by a standout performance from Evan Rachel Wood. A turn which brings to the screen an awkward young woman with long unkempt Cousin Itt-like hair and a teenage boy’s cadence, more comfortable in a shell suit than high street fashions, and seemingly stuck in arrested emotional development thanks to a complete lack of parenting.

That triangle of dysfunction and neglect is completed by the mom and dad in question, masterfully brought to life by Debra Winger and Richard Jenkins who help to create strong candidates for worst movie parents of the year. Two broken emotionally shuttered quirky adults who’ve been equally derelict in their parental duties, treating their daughter as a meal ticket and criminal investment while withholding the affection they may be incapable of showing anyway, yet somehow sympathetic thanks to the charms of the screen veterans who play them. Into this curious mix is thrown the outsider wildcard Melanie, drawn to their lifestyle by little more than curiosity and boredom with her own, as Gina Rodriguez essentially and ironically plays the ‘straight man’ of the piece—slowly pulling Old Dolio out of her stunted existence and becoming her guide to human connection and affection . . . and perhaps something more.

But a quick glance beyond the film’s funny skin-deep façade—or indeed the trailer—reveals something much more poignant and pensive than your average comedy, and for some may put into question whether ‘Kajillionaire’ is a comedy at all. Instead this is much more of a whimsical and wistful meditation on the legacy of emotional trauma and neglect, and a delayed coming-of-age story of female emancipation. Not necessarily from a toxic relationship or some sort of systematic patriarchy, but rather from exploitation and personal disregard, adding a subtle subtext of romance and a LGBTQ+ factor before the tale is through, not to mention a bizarre earthquake-driven cleansing paranoia.

The film also undoubtedly boasts its own style too, maybe not as vivid or colourful as some of its cinematic inspiration, apart from some vibrant bubble work that is, but still scruffily and uniquely dressed to impress while shot with a hazy beauty between the dusk and high sun on the streets of L.A. by cinematographer Sebastian Winterø. But for us among the several rich and characterful performances—albeit in a contained narrative with limited character development—the star of the show is really the music, in particular the score from ‘The Dig’ bassist/singer turned composer Emile Mosseri. An offbeat and fitting synth score which blends the ethereal and atmospheric with the emotive and wondrous, underlining his growing reputation as an emerging film composer after the wonders he worked on last year’s ‘The Last Black Man in San Francisco’.

Despite its idiosyncratic charms ‘Kajillionaire’ is far from a flawless or truly electrifying characters study, not as weird and wonderful as it might seem, nor is the drama as edgy or heartbreaking as it could have been. It is though occasionally too contemplative and slow for its own good when it comes to shot composition, but never to distraction, while tentatively walking the fine comedic line between quirkiness and unintentional cringeworthy, and between poignancy and tedious ponderousness, occasionally stepping over it but largely staying on the right side.

Yet despite any perceived shortcomings, ‘Kajillionaire’ has more than enough heart and personality to win most frozen-hearted cynics over, championing the outsider and breaking down the daunting barriers of loneliness and social awkwardness to forge unlikely soul-nourishing human connection. An inspirational notion which bridges generations, but seems more pertinent to every new one that comes along.

The Bottom Line…

An offbeat and quirky chronicle of human connection which betrays a poignant tale of exploitation and emancipation lying beneath, ‘Kajillionaire’ combines a particular style and characterful performances to deliver a captivating 21^st century portrait of dysfunction and yearning, as Miranda July’s distinct sensibilities conspire with years of experience to create her most accomplished meditation on the humble human condition to date.

‘Kajillionaire’ is out now in selected UK and US cinemas.

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