I just watched this movie and really enjoyed it. Somewhere I read that it's a "modern day Huck Finn story", and I didn't really get it until I saw the movie, but now I get it - two characters on a boat, an adventure, bonding, etc. Shia LaBeouf plays a crab fisherman who becomes a fugitive - and meets up with a young man with Down Syndrome also on the run; I don't know that actor's name but his performance is very good as well as Shia's - I don't normally care for him, but this is the first time he impressed me. I like the setting - the outer banks of North Carolina. I'm more of an urban person, but I often feel in another lifetime I probably lived in a rural shack like some of the characters in the movie. This movie reminded me of Into the Wild (2007) another movie I really enjoyed; it has a similar sense of adventure and uncertainty of outcome. I also was kind of reminded of Nebraska (2013) and how the father & son travel together. The dad in that movie - Bruce Dern - has a small part in this movie, too.
What also made me think about was how many adults with DS don't have biological families to call their own, which can be very hard to deal with especially around the holidays. But as the movie affirms, your friends are the family you choose (Bruce Dern's character says that, actually). And the film is about three people who become friends and start a new life.
It's a really well made film. The writing, direction, photography and music is really commendable. With Dakota Johnson, John Hawkes, and Thomas Haden Church.
Supplemental articles:
How the directors came up with the idea for the film and cast the lead actor
https://deadline.com/2019/11/roadsides-peanut-butter-falcon-took-unique-flight-path-to-screen-the-contenders-l-a-1202775598/
During a new interview, the director of “Peanut Butter Falcon” revealed he was offered more money to replace the movie’s lead actor, who has Down syndrome, for someone able-bodied with a “more marketable face,” highlighting the discrimination disabled actors face in Hollywood.
https://themighty.com/2019/10/peanut-butter-falcon-james-nilson-down-symdrome/
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