Writer/director Richard Linklater is one of my favorite filmmakers, and Boyhood does not disappoint. It is a unique film, having been shot over 11 years using the same core actors. But viewers should know that Linklater, through his characters, will talk your ear off in the pursuit of existential meaning.
Mason (Ellar Coltrane) is in the first grade and lives with his older sister, Samantha (Lorelei Linklater), and mother (Patricia Arquette). Mom is raising the kids mostly on her own, but their good-natured dad (Ethan Hawke) has visiting rights. The family travels from one Texas town to another. Mom first marries an abusive, alcoholic college professor; then a good old boy who isn’t good with kids. The years pass, and Mason and Samantha grow up.
There’s nothing fancy about Boyhood. This could be any family, except for the unusual questions about the meaning of life that Mason quietly pursues. In the end, Boyhood is a meditation on life, and I hope he never gives up searching.
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