C’mon C’mon review: Mike Mills delivers the life-affirming movie we need right now

Filmmaker Mike Mills (Beginners, 20th Century Women) has made a career out of crafting heartfelt and moving films about the joy and pain of family, a trend he continues with his striking new film black & white film, C’mon C’mon. With revelatory performances from Joaquin Phoenix, Gabby Hoffman, and a star-making turn from child actor Woody Norman, C’mon C’mon is a warm embrace of a film that never shies away from the more difficult aspects of our existence.

Phoenix stars as Johnny, a radio journalist in the middle of a cross-country project to interview children about their thoughts on the future. While working on the piece in Detroit, Johnny speaks with his estranged sister Viv (Hoffman) who asks him to fly from New York to Los Angeles to temporarily watch over her son Jesse (Norman). Viv has to leave town to care for her husband Paul (Scoot McNairy) who is in the midst of a mental health crisis. Knowing he is essentially Viv’s only option, Johnny flies to California to watch over Jesse, an exuberant and imaginative young boy.

While that sounds like a typical tear-jerker Sundance drama, C’mon C’mon defies those boilerplate dramatic conventions at nearly every turn. Part of that is due to the character of Jesse, an oddball child who often reverts to a strange fantasy world to help him cope with daily life. His mother plays along, but it strikes Johnny as excessively coddling; why can’t Jesse just act “normal?”

As Johnny and Jesse begin to warm up to each other, Johnny brings him on a whirlwind tour of the US as he continues interviewing children in New York City and New Orleans. Their relationship is weird, touching, and incredibly moving; Johnny doesn’t have any kids of his own, and he’s learning just as much about being a guardian as Jesse is learning about the rest of the world and his place in it.

Mills (who also wrote the script) doesn’t allow any superfluous drama or grandstanding here; much of the emotion in the film is derived from a simple knowing look or a laugh. In a unique twist, Mills lets outside voices carry much of the emotional weight in the film. Excerpts from books or poetry the characters are reading in the film reinforce the situations these characters find themselves in or their thoughts on the world, which they are acknowledging to themselves as they read the texts read aloud.

Nothing much happens in C’mon C’mon, but to employ an eye-rolling cliché, everything happens. It’s hard to understate the rush of warm feelings Mills delivers with this film, even if it’s rarely sentimental and is often dealing with some of the knottier questions of life, love, and family. As we hear from an assortment of children across the U.S. speaking to their hopes for the future, it’s hard not to think of our frightening present day and the sort of world these children will be growing up in.

Beautifully shot in crisp black & white and with a lush and evocative score from Aaron and Bryce Dessner of The National, C’mon C’mon is simply one of the most beautiful movies of the year. The performances are so impactful but feel tossed-off in a naturalistic, documentary-like way. Phoenix once again proves why he is one of the best actors of this (or any) generation, but it’s the kooky and humane performance from the wide-eyed Woody Norman that will stick with you. If there is any justice in the world, this is a film we’ll all be talking about as it sweeps the Oscars next March.

C’mon C’mon is in theaters now.