Cast: Ellar Coltrane, Patricia Arquette, Ethan Hawke, Lorelei Linklater Release Date (UK): 11 July, 2014 Certificate: 15 Runtime: 166 min
Richard Linklater's "Boyhood" is a soaringly epic yet deeply intimate journey through the life of a boy from age 5 to age 18 that is completely immersive and unmistakeably human. Filmed over 12 years with the same actors, it's an extraordinary achievement in movie-making and unlike any film I've ever seen before. Filmmakers the world over aspire to the level of human truth which comes so naturally here, and in such high and heavy abundance; as an ode to human nature, it's simply breathtaking.
Linklater has, in the past, shown an interest in how people change over time; his engrossing "Before" trilogy provided us with glimpses at the evolving relationship between two lovers over the course of almost 20 years. Here, he invites us to watch as young Mason grows through the years, and as he transforms from a watchful young boy into an awkward teenager into a confident young man with his whole future ahead of him. Mason is played by Ellar Coltrane, and he plays him at 5 years old, and he plays him at 18 years old, and he plays him at everything in between. Coltrane gives one of the great child performances, and one of the great teen performances, too; he's completely natural, which makes his 12-year transformation all the more enthralling.
As the film progresses, we watch as Mason goes through the various stages that come naturally with growing up: we watch as he stares at the sky in wonder, as his mother reads Harry Potter to him and his big sister Samantha, as he goes through a long hair phase, as he becomes curious about sex, as his voice changes, as he experiments with drugs and drinking, as he gets his first job washing dishes at a diner, as he has his heart broken for the first time, and as he leaves home to go to college. And we watch as the world changes around him too; not just in terms of technology, politics and culture (though that's definitely in there -- as the years pass by, PS1s turn into Nintendo Wiis, Bush turns into Obama, etc.), but also in terms of his homelife: he moves house three times throughout his childhood; he lives under the roof of three stepfathers of varying fatherly quality; he switches primary schools, goes to high school and then finally is whisked away to college. It's these which shape Mason's character throughout the years, and ultimately shape the man he is to be. And it's all beautifully, but crucially not intrusively, captured by Linklater, who watches this boy's life experiences from his ever-evolving perspective.
It's not just Mason who we watch evolve through the years. His mother Olivia, played by Patricia Arquette, we see raising Mason and Samantha both on her own and with various boyfriends as she puts herself through college. His father Mason Sr., a slacker musician played by Ethan Hawke, we see taking Mason and Samantha bowling, out for a meal and to football games every other weekend, all the while he deals with his own lack of responsibility. And then there's his sister Samantha, played by Linklater's daughter Lorelei, at first a lovable little brat whose mischievous qualities we see fade the more she becomes interested in boys. Along with Mason Jr., these people age, mature and develop before our eyes, and their development tells a story: the story of time, and how things change over time, and more specifically how people change over time -- and it's as riveting, moving and, most importantly, human a story as any you'll see this year.
At 166 minutes, the film is a mere 60 seconds longer than the new "Transformers" movie. But while Michael Bay's vacuous explosion-fest is at the very least a whole hour too long, I would have very happily sat and watched "Boyhood" for another hour or so. If you grew up on the planet Earth, you owe it to yourself to see this movie: somewhere in here is something that will deeply resonate with you, be it through distant memories of your childhood or the one you're experiencing right now. I know that it resonated with me, and I know that it's my favourite film of the year so far. If there's a better film released in 2014, I'll eat my own foot.
Rating: 10/10
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