C’mon C’mon – Film Review

Johnny (Joaquin Phoenix) is an emotionally stunted and softspoken radio journalist who travels the country interviewing a variety of kids about their thoughts concerning their world and their future. Then Johnny’s saddled with caring for his young nephew Jesse (Woody Norman). Jesse brings a new perspective and, as they travel from state to state, effectively turns the emotional tables on Johnny.

Mike Mills is a filmmaker who is known for crafting films that meditate on the everyday mundanity of life even though he’s only directed a couple of features thus far in his career. And although I’m confident that Mills is going to direct a handful of additional films down the road, it’s going to be seriously tough to beat his newest film C’mon C’mon – an extremely soothing, emotional, hilarious, and genuinely moving story about how one man’s life changes after he starts to bond with his young nephew.

C’mon C’mon is one of those movies that many people are going to want to put down on a rainy or otherwise miserable day for them as the perfect cure to cheer them up. Heck, I’m sure I’ll do the same thing. Its story is infectiously sweet but it’s not presented in a way that makes you cringe at just how charming it tries to be, mainly because Mills never once makes desperate attempts at telling a heartwarming story. The story is simply heartwarming by nature thanks to Joaquin Phoenix and Woody Norman’s incredible performances.

Here, they have absolutely terrific chemistry together and make for such a believable duo. By watching this film, you’d swear that Norman is Phoenix’s nephew in real-life. They go through tons of turmoil in the film but their love for one another always comes out on top. It’s nearly impossible to not smile at least a dozen times while watching them in C’mon C’mon.

It’s also a gorgeously shot film by director of photography Robbie Ryan, who truly makes the streets of Los Angeles and Detroit look more stunning than ever before. The black-and-white quality of the film makes it even more memorable too. This movie would’ve been just as powerful in color, but there’s just something so unique about the lack of color in this film that truly makes it stand out.

Aaron and Bryce Dessner (aka two of my musical heroes after hearing the former’s work on Taylor Swift’s Folklore and Evermore) composed the score for this film and it’s a thing of beauty. There are tons of scenes in the film where their music makes an already terrific scene stand out just a little bit more. They’re two of the most talented people in the industry and I’m so glad they’re getting hired for film projects now, in addition to their regular line of work.

By the time Mike Mills’ C’mon C’mon comes to a close, you’ll find yourself wrapped up in tons of emotion. You’ll have a gigantic smile on your face, and you’ll wish the film was two hours longer. You’ll want to stick around and watch the adventures of Johnny and Jesse forever, but, of course, that’s not possible. I’m just grateful that I got to spend one-hundred-and-eight minutes with them, because it was some of the best one-hundred-and-eight minutes I’ve spent watching a film all year.