i get that it's never been done in this way, but we've seen kids grow up on TV before and in service of better stories. overall, i enjoyed it, but it was a slog through certain parts. like watching someone else's home movies. i guess you could say its ordinariness is what makes it extraordinary. you could say that, and i could slap you, and we'd both be right. the three scenes at the end (green room, empty nest, and college hike) kind of save this from being a complete waste of time. at least they tried to throw some insight into it, though we didn't need three hours to get there.

the people who are saying this is a celebration of whiteness are mostly right. there's nothing remarkable about this family or this kid, other than they are middle american white. boyhood is basically a 12-year selfie for anyone who grew up (or raised kids) like this, every bit as narcissistic and needy as the picture of your breakfast you posted to facebook this morning. your unremarkable life is so important that we spent 12-years making a movie about it. presto, life validated. the fact that the academy is 95% white and 75% male (and i'm guessing high-90% american, high-90% raised middle-class) makes it not that hard to see why this is the runaway frontrunner for best picture. an equivalent movie about an unremarkable black family would be mostly ignored (and rightfully so), an equivalent movie about an unremarkable family set in a country other than america would never be seen.

performances were top notch. they lucked out with the kid and they know it. i even enjoyed the daughter who went from being adorable to unbearably obnoxious to reserved, just like a real girl. arquette and hawke were fine, but both characters and performances were-- again-- rescued from complete pointlessness by their final scenes. an interesting movie, enjoyable in parts, worth seeing. no way would i sit through it again.