'Honey Boy (2019)' is an, essentially, autobiographical account of Shia LaBeouf's strained relationship with his father and his attempts to overcome the resultant PTSD while in court-mandated rehab. The film was actually written during LaBeouf's stay in the previously mentioned clinic. In it, he portrays his own father. It's fair to say that it's an incredibly personal piece; you can practically feel the catharsis oozing from the screen. It's actually very satisfying, feeling almost like a form of medicine. Even though you don't know LaBeouf personally, it's difficult not to feel sort of proud of the guy. His performance as his own father is nothing short of fantastic. It's highly empathetic and feels like an effort to understand, rather than to destroy. The piece posits that the only road to recovery is forgiveness, which removes the generational anger that plagues cyclically abusive families. It makes distinct efforts, mainly via repeated motifs, to convey this theme across both of its time-periods. The direction is markedly good in general. It separates its stories via subtle changes in cinematography, often creating pseudo-surrealist sequences which wonderfully bridge the two. It's a considered effort, for sure. The final movement does occur a little quickly, as the movie seems to skip to its denouement whilst in the middle of its underplayed third act. Prior to this, there's no real sense of escalation, either. Still, these relatively small issues aren't all that detrimental. The performances are brilliant, the narrative is nicely balanced and the end-result is as engaging as it is affecting. It's catharsis incarnate. 7/10
Review of Honey Boy
