KAJILLIONAIRE

A heartbreaking tale about a family of grifters staring Evan Rachel Wood, Richard Jenkins, and Debra Winger. Throughout the film I'm left wondering how successful these people could be if they focused their efforts on real employment, rather than just trying to skate by in life? At first I was very struck by Wood's portrayal of her character Old Dolio (yeah, I'm not a fan of it either). She's very monotone and practically robotic for most of the film. However, as the relationship between her and her parents unfold, you understand the reasoning behind it. She's being emotionally abused and neglected by her parents, until Melanie enters the picture (played by Gina Rodriguez). The first half of the film is a look at a pseudo-family, while the second half, with the introduction of Rodriguez, introduces us to companionship. A very strong performance by Wood that I'd daresay is borderline Oscar nomination worthy. I say border because the next Oscars will take both films released in 2020 and 2021 into account. 5.5/10