By: Andrew Wing

C’mon C’mon is a 2021 American black-and-white drama film written and directed by Mike Mills (also directed Beginners and 20th Century Women). It stars Joaquin Phoenix (The Master, Joker), Gaby Hoffmann (Transparent, Girls), Scoot McNairy (12 Years a Slave, Gone Girl), Molly Webster, Jaboukie Young-White (Rough Night), and Woody Norman.

The film follows Johnny (played by Phoenix), who takes care of his nephew (Norman) while his family is going through some challenging times. The film had its world premiere at the 48th Telluride Film Festival on September 2, 2021, and was released in limited theatres on November 19, 2021, by A24.

THE GOOD

I was very pumped for this film for two reasons. First, it’s an A24 film and I literally just can’t get enough of their movies as I love pretty much everything they put out. Second, this is Joaquin Phoenix’s first feature film since winning Best Actor for his performance as Arthur Fleck / Joker in the 2019 psychological thriller Joker.

I won’t waste any time so let’s get right into it, Joaquin Phoenix does a brilliant job in this. It is easily one of my favorite performances of his as he completely blends himself into the film and his character to the point where you don’t even see him anymore as an actor, you just see the character. He just is what the movie needs him to be and it was remarkable to say the least. It’s wild that this is his first film since Joker and also that his role in this could not be any more different from his role in Joker. And while I don’t think he will win Best Actor again for this, I strongly think he is worthy of a nomination and I would love to see him nominated for this performance.

I was also extremely impressed with the performance of Gaby Hoffmann, who plays Johnny’s sister and also Jesse’s mother Viv. Apparently she was in Sleepless in Seattle way back in the 90s, but this was the first I’ve ever seen of her as an adult actress and I was pleasantly surprised. She is really good in this and she brought a lot of personality and humor to her character. She gave a really honest portrayal of what a mother is that is deeply central to the film as a whole and I just connected with her performance very much.

There is no denying that Joaquin was the star of the show, but Woody Norman might’ve stolen the show. He plays the child, Jesse, in this film and he is truly incredible. So many times we get performances from child actors that just don’t feel real or authentic, but that is absolutely not the case here. I can really say that Woody Norman was just as good as Joaquin Phoenix in this which is very high praise for a child. He is just a wonder to watch on screen and his performance just made me lock into the film. Also, I will riot if he doesn’t get nominated for Best Supporting Actor. Just saying.

Director Mike Mills did a great job with this. I have yet to check out his earlier film Beginners (2010), but I really enjoyed 20th Century Women (2016). With that said, this has got to be his best film to date. Mills just has a knack for making tender, honest, and very funny films and to be honest, this film has a very New York, dialogue-heavy, naturalistic style that is similar to other great directors like Woody Allen and Noah Baumbach, so I would say he is destined for greatness. His direction was so evident in this, and it was clear that Mills trusted Phoenix as he gave us maybe his most emotional performance since Her (2013).

Not only did Mills direct this, but he also wrote this film. The writing was just fantastic, but what impressed me the most was just how intelligently all the characters were written, especially Jesse. This film just really touched me as I was able to understand the film so deeply thanks to Mills’ writing. You could tell that Mills wanted every character to have intention in every scene. With his screenplay, he made it clear to the audience that the essence of this film is the relationship between these two characters and it is just so heartwarming, charming, and funny. Mills just checked every box when it came to this screenplay and I have a hard time seeing him not get nominated for Best Original Screenplay at the Oscars.

Also worth mentioning, Joaquin Phoenix’s character Johnny is a radio journalist traveling the country with his producing partners, interviewing children about their lives and their thoughts on the future. The children they interview are not actors, and throughout the film we get to listen in on some of the interviews and get some very insightful and moving answers from the younger generation. I just thought this was a very nice touch to the film that Mills decided to add to show us his loving perspective of the world. It gave me a very clear take away from the film, and that is that no matter how messy life can get sometimes, we just have to keep moving forward and rely on those around us which I really admired.

Lastly, the score for this film that was done by Bryce and Aaron Dessner is very good and I found it to be ethereal as it features a lot of unique sounds and arrangements that just felt very soft and nice. Also the cinematography was fabulous and I’m just a sucker for some great black-and-white cinematography.

THE BAD

Walking out of the theater, I was trying to think of things I didn’t like about it and I couldn’t come up with any. Now, having had a couple of days to let this film digest, I still have nothing bad to say. I loved every part of this movie and it will undoubtedly be on my year-end top 10. I just found this to be such an easy movie to sink into and connect with, and I think you will too.

One thing I will put out there as just a warning/heads up to anyone considering checking this out. The entire film is in black-and-white, so just be prepared. If you’re one of those people who needs color in their movies, this might not be the movie for you…but you should still try it out because it’s that good.

THE VERDICT

From director Mike Mills, C’mon C’mon is a beautiful and tender drama film that will just make you appreciate life. The film features yet another masterful performance from Joaquin Phoenix, this being his first since Joker, and he quickly reminds us why he is one of the very best. We also get Woody Norman, the 11 year-old kid who goes toe-to-toe with Phoenix as he gives one of the most spectacular performances I’ve seen for his age group.

Everything in this film from the dialogue, the ethereal score, the stunning black-and-white cinematography, to the characters and the performances was so expertly crafted and makes this hands-down one of my favorites of the year (currently #3 behind Dune and King Richard)!