This film is part of Rentals
The Florida Project
Tangerine director Sean Baker presents another visionary take on the wild ups and dangerous downs of life in America’s underbelly, featuring an Oscar-nominated turn from Willem Dafoe.
Drama 2017 112 mins
Director: Sean Baker
Overview
Sean Baker’s magical, magnificent and madcap follow-up to Tangerine, set against the backdrop of America’s failed economy. Six-year-old Moonee (the astonishingly good Brooklynn Kimberly Prince) lives with her mother and other castaways from the American dream in a candy-floss-coloured roadside motel in Orlando. Disney World is just up the road, but their budget dayglow home is no plush hotel resort. Halley, Moonee’s mother, is only just an adult herself. More of an incorrigible older sister than a parent, she gets a kick out of juvenile hijinks, with utter disregard for their consequences. Meanwhile, nothing stops her daughter’s irrepressible sense of adventure; always unsupervised, Moonee roams the grounds with her gang, hustling change for ice creams, hosting spitting contests and teasing tolerant motel manager Bobby (a sublime, Oscar-nominated Willem Dafoe) to distraction.
The genius of Baker’s film is how it runs along two parallel tracks. Narrated from a child’s-eye view, this is a marvellous world of play and possibility. But adult viewers witnessing Halley’s life will suspect what’s coming for Moonee. That this dazzling, precocious girl is a lightning rod of wayward charm makes the inevitable so much harder to bear. The Florida Project is an ingenious, instant classic about childhood innocence.
strong language, sex referencesAccessibility
Related
Drama
Gwen Gwen
Drama 2018 84 mins Director: William McGregor
A young girl tries desperately to protect her family from illness and dark outside forces in William McGregor's stark period horror.
The Blonde One The Blonde One
Drama 2019 111 mins Director: Marco Berger
A tentative friendship blossoms into a beautiful bromance in this erotically-charged yet disarmingly sweet-natured offering from Marco Berger (Taekwondo).
Tell It to the Bees Tell It to the Bees
Drama 2017 108 mins Director: Annabel Jankel
Anna Paquin and Holliday Grainger star as two very different women who fall in love in this 1950s-set romantic drama.
A Fantastic Woman A Fantastic Woman
Drama 2017 104 mins Director: Sebastián Lelio
This invigorating and inspiring Chilean drama from Sebastián Lelio (Gloria) follows a trans woman’s quest for a little respect. Winner of the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film 2018.
The Souvenir The Souvenir
Drama 2018 120 mins Director: Joanna Hogg
Winner of Sundance 2019's Grand Jury Prize, The Souvenir is the compelling, semi-autobiographical drama from acclaimed writer-director Joanna Hogg.
Daphne Daphne
Drama 2016 87 mins Director: Peter Mackie Burns
Emily Beecham stars in a powerful character study about a 31-year-old chef who's drifting through her London life, until she witnesses a shocking event…
Coming of Age
American Honey American Honey
Drama 2016 163 mins Director: Andrea Arnold
Andrea Arnold dazzles with a sun-soaked and tune-filled epic about door-to-door teenage magazine sellers (led by Shia LeBeouf) traversing the American highways.
A Date For Mad Mary A Date For Mad Mary
2016 83 mins Director: Darren Thornton
Dry, sarcastic, maddening Mary must find a date for her best friend’s wedding in this Irish feel-good hit for misfits everywhere.
Güeros Güeros
Drama 2014 111 mins Director: Alonso Ruizpalacios
A teenager is banished to his brother in Mexico City, from where a road trip is planned to track down an elusive musician.
Spaceship Spaceship
Comedy 2016 90 mins Director: Alex Taylor
British teen cinema gets an injection of hallucinogenic imagination, plus a few unicorns and aliens, in Alex Taylor’s unclassifiable debut feature.
Moonlight Moonlight
Drama 2016 111 mins Director: Barry Jenkins
Winner of the 2017 Oscar for Best Picture (eventually!), Barry Jenkins’ intoxicating drama follows the furtive life of a gay black boy through 80s Miami.
Paperhouse Paperhouse
Fantasy 1988 89 mins Director: Bernard Rose
Bernard Rose’s cult adult fantasy follows a young girl who discovers an increasingly dark and dangerous dream world.
Featuring Willem Dafoe
American Psycho American Psycho
Drama 2000 102 mins Director: Mary Harron
Christian Bale slays his competition in this chilling satire set in ‘80s Wall Street.
Wild at Heart Wild at Heart
Drama 1990 125 mins Director: David Lynch
Nicolas Cage and Laura Dern are the lovers on the run in David Lynch’s violent, sexy and surreal road movie, a Palme d’Or winner in 1990.
The Last Temptation of Christ The Last Temptation of Christ
Drama 1988 163 mins Director: Martin Scorsese
Scorsese’s visually arresting interpretation of the life of Christ, featuring Willem Dafoe, Harvey Keitel and David Bowie.
A Most Wanted Man A Most Wanted Man
Thriller 2014 122 mins Director: Anton Corbijn
In one of his final roles, Philip Seymour Hoffman excels as a German spy attempting to recruit Islamic informants, in Anton Corbijn’s sophisticated John le Carré adaptation.
New
Gwen Gwen
Drama 2018 84 mins Director: William McGregor
A young girl tries desperately to protect her family from illness and dark outside forces in William McGregor's stark period horror.
The Blonde One The Blonde One
Drama 2019 111 mins Director: Marco Berger
A tentative friendship blossoms into a beautiful bromance in this erotically-charged yet disarmingly sweet-natured offering from Marco Berger (Taekwondo).
Diego Maradona Diego Maradona
Documentary 2019 124 mins Director: Asif Kapadia
The supreme football superstar is the latest subject for acclaimed filmmaker Asif Kapadia (Amy, Senna), as he deftly explores the complicated dynamic between Diego the man and Maradona the icon.
Meeting Gorbachev Meeting Gorbachev
Documentary 2018 91 mins Director: Werner Herzog
Werner Herzog meets the former President of the Soviet Union in this invigorating portrait of a towering 20th-century figure.
Tell It to the Bees Tell It to the Bees
Drama 2017 108 mins Director: Annabel Jankel
Anna Paquin and Holliday Grainger star as two very different women who fall in love in this 1950s-set romantic drama.
A Fantastic Woman A Fantastic Woman
Drama 2017 104 mins Director: Sebastián Lelio
This invigorating and inspiring Chilean drama from Sebastián Lelio (Gloria) follows a trans woman’s quest for a little respect. Winner of the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film 2018.