Honey Boy (2019) Review

Shia LaBeouf’s emotionally charged masterpiece goes under the microscope.

The 2019 feature debut from Alma Ha’rel, sees the semi-autobiographical tale of Shia LaBeouf, adapting a script he penned during a rehab period.

The film is all but perfect, if, like myself you were of a younger age in the early 2000s, then Shia LaBeouf‘s media presence was inescapable. Best known for being the lead Louis in Evens Stevens or his turn as Sam in the early Bay Transformer’s films, his hyperactive performance style was well established and really charming as a lead, and one that I’d delved into here, revealing in cathartic fashion the origins of such a style and offering insight into a man who became this enigmatic ‘outsider’ in his industry. Much like Robert Pattinson, the star has undergone a major remodelling and this film has both a personal touch and artistic flair.

A non-linear take of two distinct periods of LaBeouf’s surrogate ‘Otis Lort’ (Played by both Noah Jupe and Lucas Hedges), we see his trauma on his ride to stardom. Tackling not in a chronological fashion, the films earlier stages are set in 1995 and sees Jupe’s Otis spend his time with his father James (Played by LaBeouf himself) in a seedy motel whilst he navigates his child stardom And rising career. Here we manage to get deep information about both parties of James and Otis. The Lort family is fractured, James, a registered sex offender who’s on the knife edge of breaking his sobriety, the mother (who I believe remains nameless) is a worker and the young Otis is stuck, slap bang in the middle of the two. The child star has to juggle, literally and figuratively, his parents’ broken relationship, rising career prospects and abuse from his father and towards substances. Impressively the film deals with such heavy, heavy themes yet addresses them with not only sensitivity but a sense of clarity also. Clearly LaBeouf has reached a stage of comfort almost, from which he can reflect and approach from an almost ‘appreciation’ dare I say, and though I‘m jumping slightly ahead, the conflation of the two time periods creates this emotional slaughtering, something beyond just a ‘gut punch’, it unloads a whole load of issues and is beneficial for doing so as that’s where the substance arises from. It’s odd, one wouldn’t imagine that such a film would be all that entertaining or interesting yet it’s practically a bridge into the world of LaBeouf. The juxtaposition works stunningly, the 90s are shot in an almost psychedelic fashion with the 2000s a clean, muted, grey palette - further demonstrating the growth of Lort and by extension LaBeouf.

The cast really carry this film home, I could rave most of the day about the narrative and with good reason but it’s trio of leads and most notable cameo were outstanding. This was far and away the best performance I’ve seen from Lucas Hedges, he puts on a whole array of emotion from rage to muted pain, a stoic showing when he later confronts his father in all clown getup. It’s the first I’ve seen of him in a larger role and he really rose to the occasion, especially given how he’s been shackled in previous roles. As expected Shia LaBeouf was exceptional and was really playing against his type being the ‘villain’ and all, I suppose one could see it as his final confrontation with his past and is his true catharsis. Noah Jupe perfectly channels the young, hyper Shia character and is really convincing as this well-known child star, the world feels loved in around him and really alive. There’s a special nod to FKA Twigs too, her cameo as ‘Shy Girl’ really offered something unique, being that supportive figure that Otis required and turning in her own stellar performance. And who could possibly forget Henrietta LaFowl? The world’s first daredevil chicken and a real scene stealer.

The Cast and Crew assembled

The Film was also stunningly shot, I mentioned the different tones for different eras but generally it’s stunningly filmed. The environments are captured really well, you get a good grasp of the many locations and supporting cast which is a credit to Natasha Braier who’s previously racked up cinematographer credits on The Neon Demon & short film Swimmer.

Now available in the UK on Prime Video (Finally!) I’d highly recommend you watch Honey Boy it’s an emotional rollercoaster, beautifully captured and brilliantly immersive, it’s well worth the 90 minute run time.