Screenplay Three: Little Miss Sunshine

Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
Michael Arndt
Click for screenplay.
"You know what...? Fuck beauty contests. It's like life is one fucking beauty contest after another these days. School, then college, then work. Fuck it... you do what you love, and fuck the rest."



I'm going to start this by defending myself...

I have seen Little Miss Sunshine a lot. My dad introduced it to me (no surprises there) during one of our family movie nights. (This is a good time to inform you, by the way, that I am one of those people who will watch their favorite movies/TV shows ad nauseum.)

My point? I know the movie very well. I'm quite familiar with each scene, the soundtrack, and the plot, as well as each of the characters.

I think that reading the screenplay of a movie I know very well is a valuable exercise because it strips away other aspects of the film--specific actors and their deliveries, the cinematography, all of that stuff--and makes me look at the story itself. Do I like the movie for the complete package, or for the story and its armature alone, or something else? It's A Wonderful Life, I discovered, has a brilliant story that I regard highly but it is packaged within a movie that I would not place in my top ten list (which I haven't ever created, but I know IAWL would not be in it). After having read the Little Miss Sunshine screenplay, I hope to explain my feelings towards it through that same lense. 

My regular source for screenplays, IMSDb, has not posted the Little Miss Sunshine script at the time of writing. I found an online version of the script that (because I know the movie so well) is NOT the post-production version of the script, i.e., not just a transcribed version of the film. The date on the screenplay I read is 2003, three years before the movie even came out.

So, if you're reading this review and you've seen the movie, you may (like me) notice some variation in the dialogue/scenery as well as some scenes that didn't make it into the film. 

Since this blog is all about the screenplay and not about the film, I am dealing with the script I read and not the movie. The biggest difference you need to know is that this script places the family in Maryland with the Little Miss Sunshine beauty pageant taking place in Boca Raton, Florida. (For those of you who haven't seen the movie, the movie places the family in Albuquerque, New Mexico with the pageant taking place in Redondo Beach, California.)

I get the impression that Arndt is big on psychology. 

I say this because all of the main characters in Little Miss Sunshine have big fat suitcases filled with their personal emotional baggage. They have different ways of thinking about life, and different ways of solving their problems. 

On the very top-most level, this story is about a little girl who loves beauty pageants and wants to win one so badly that her entire family drives hours and hours to get her to Little Miss Sunshine, where she ultimately loses and then they all go home. The end.

But that's super-boring and also a huge downer. Strangely enough, however, I'm not feeling too depressed by the end... and I think that's because Arndt cares so much about each character. Using Magic (aka good character development), he creates a story that includes several tragic events but ultimately ends on a good note. That's what I really like about this story, and why I keep coming back to it... I deem a story "realistic" and therefore more relatable (Emma's thoughts on McDonald's Golden Theme, "Everybody is the same") when everything isn't tied up in a neat little bow but the characters struggled and have grown as people.

I'm gonna wimp out a little and say that the armature is essentially "The journey is its own reward." Since the script shows the development of six separate characters, it's difficult to be any more specific than that, but it definitely applies to each of them within their own struggles. I'll look more closely at characters after the Seven Steps.

The Seven Steps:

1) Once upon a time, Richard and his wife Sheryl live with Sheryl's two kids Dwayne and Olive, along with Richard's father, in a small house in Maryland (read: Albuquerque, New Mexico in the movie). They are joined by Sheryl's brother Frank, who has attempted to commit suicide and needs a place to stay.

2) And every day, Richard tries to sell his motivational "Nine Steps" program, Sheryl struggles to keep the family afloat financially, Dwayne works diligently towards becoming a fighter pilot, Olive dreams of winning beauty pageants, Grandpa fosters a recent heroin addiction while simultaneously "training" Olive for beauty pageantry, and Frank is mired in his depression.

3) Until one day, the family receives news that Olive has been invited to compete in the Little Miss Sunshine beauty pageant and decide that despite their difficult financial situation and their general (Frank's, Dwayne's, and Richard's) unwillingness to go, they pile into an old, decrepit Volkswagen van for a trip all the way to Boca Raton Florida (read: Redondo Beach, California).

4) And because of this, Richard is on the road when he finally contacts his agent and learns that his "Nine Steps" will never sell, in addition to Grandpa accidentally overdosing on heroin and dying in the hotel room.

5) And because of this, the family is forced to smuggle Grandpa's body over state borders in order to make it to Boca Raton in time for the pageant. Simultaneously, they discover that Dwayne is colorblind from a brochure that Olive picked up from the hospital and he then learns that he cannot become a fighter pilot.

6) Until finally, the family reaches the pageant and Olive performs her dance routine to the song "Superfreak". She does not win, and her routine's raunchy characteristics lead to a lifelong ban on entering all Florida beauty pageants before the family begins the long trek back to Maryland.

7) And ever since that day, the family is less dysfunctional as each member has developed a better understanding of not only themselves, but also of each other.

Alright, let's talk characters. I'll pick an identifying quote for each person.

Richard Harvey (read: Hoover, in the movie)

RICHARD: Winners see their dreams come true. Winners see what they want, they go out and they get it. They don't hesitate. They don't make excuses. And they don't give up. Losers don't get what they want. They hesitate. They make excuses. And they give up. On themselves and their dreams.

Richard is an incredibly unlikable character for the majority of the screenplay. This unlikability is not because he is a malicious person. Richard is a die-hard optimist who believes that "faith in yourself is what leads you to winning" but this comes across as "winning is the most important thing". This creates very tense relationships between Richard/Sheryl, Richard/Grandpa, Richard/Dwayne, and Richard/Frank--hell, it creates almost all of the tension in the script.

Sheryl is annoyed by the fact that Richard makes almost no money and she is the "breadwinner" (I put that in quotes because it's clear that she doesn't exactly have a highpaying job). 

Grandpa is annoyed by Richard's optimism because it manifests itself in the way he raises Olive, and Grandpa is very supportive of the little girl. The script reveals that Grandpa, while he doesn't necessarily agree with Richard's obsession with his "Nine Step" method, does approve of his son putting himself out there and taking a risk.

Dwayne is annoyed because he foresees Richard's impending failure (and also, he is an angsty teen who reads Nietzsche, so he's annoyed by pretty much everyone).

You get the impression that Frank has never approved of his sister's choice to marry Richard. Frank and Richard are constantly at odds because Richard is the ultimate optimist whose mantra is essentially never give up, while Frank recently attempted suicide (in Richard's eyes, the ultimate act of giving up).

Despite his seemingly confident attitude, you can tell that Richard is insecure about his future and Stan Grossman's assurance that the "Nine Steps" will sell:

SHERYL: So what happened with Stan Grossman? 

RICHARD: He's still in Atlanta. 

SHERYL: So why hasn't he called you? 

RICHARD: Will you let me worry about this?! 

Richard's attitude towards Frank's suicide, his obsession with the "Nine Steps", and his attempt at being a positive role model for Olive (which fails miserably) leads me to dislike him almost all the time. However, like Grandpa, I ultimately admire Richard for his stick-to-it-iveness. You can see that he truly believes the "Nine Steps" are a great tool and is willing to put a lot of faith into people, himself, and Fate (although he wouldn't admit it) in order to share his method with the world. Also, this same stubborn never-give-up mantra is what really gets the family to their destination even in the face of extreme opposition. One of Richard's better moments of characterization is his last-ditch effort to convince Stan Grossman that the "Nine Steps" are worthwhile--he rides a moped in the dark, in the rain, alone, thirty-five miles an hour down a busy highway for twenty-three miles.

I think it takes Richard the most amount of time to solve his problems. Up until Olive's dance routine, he is determined to believe that the title of "Winner" is the most important goal, the most important part of the process:

RICHARD: ...but I think [this trip would] all be worth it... if you won tonight.

Everyone else has begun to resolve their problems. Richard hasn't yet seen what Olive is up against in the Little Miss Sunshine pageant and has complete blind faith that if she wants it badly enough, she'll get it. It's when he realizes that his daughter has no chance that he brings his concerns to Sheryl and, for the first time probably ever, recommends quitting:

RICHARD: I don't want her to lose. I know what that feels like. It's not good. We can't let that happen.

[If I remember correctly, this line didn't make the cut into the film, but I really wish it had. I think this proves Richard's development better than almost anything (except for the Dancing-Harvey-Family Fiasco).]

Sheryl Harvey (née Ginsberg)

SHERYL: Listen to me. Olive is who she is. This is what she's chosen to do. She's worked hard, she's poured herself into it... we can't take it away from her. We just can't.

Sheryl identifies as caregiver. She's the mother to two children (from a different marriage? it's not too clear), an older sister to Frank (who is placed legally under her care after his release from the hospital), and the primary support for Richard (who makes almost no money and has apparently borrowed a lot from Sheryl).

I think Sheryl's primary struggle throughout the script is the conflict between her desire to maintain the role of caregiver, and the realizations that the family is drowning financially and that she can really only do so much by herself. 

OLIVE: Mom, how much can we spend? 

SHERYL: I'd say four dollars. Anything under four.

I love this. The family is in one of those roadside cafés ordering breakfast. In less than fifteen words, the audience really gets hit with the financial situation that the family is in. We've heard Richard and Sheryl talking about using their "seed money" already... but when this little girl asks a question like this (she's six years old, for god's sake), you know that she's been trained to do so. I get the feeling that parents probably wouldn't train their children like that unless it was a very serious, long-term problem.

Sheryl is incredibly protective of Dwayne, Olive, and even Frank--what's sad is that she spends the entire movie wearily defending them from her own husband. 

Frank Ginsberg

RICHARD: But I just want you to know--I feel sorry for you.

FRANK: You do? Good. 

RICHARD: Because sarcasm is the refuge of losers. 

FRANK: It is?! Really?! 

RICHARD: Sarcasm is just the sour grapes of losers trying to pull winners down to their level. That's one of the lessons of Step Four. 

FRANK: Wow, Richard! You've really opened my eyes to what a loser I am! Say, how much do I owe you for those pearls of wisdom? 

RICHARD: It's on me, buddy. It's on me. 

It's easiest to describe Frank in a bulleted list:

• Frank, Sheryl's middle-aged gay brother, was the top Proust scholar in the U.S.
• He started dating a grad student and subsequently fell in love with him
• The grad student left Frank for the second-most-eminent Proust scholar, Larry Sugarman
• Frank was fired and kicked out of his apartment, then lived in a motel
• The MacArthur Foundation awarded a "genius" grant to Sugarman
• Frank tried to commit suicide, but failed

When he moves into the Harvey house (specifically into Dwayne's room with him), he is in a very low place indeed. Richard's undying optimism doesn't allow him to feel too empathetic for Frank and I'd argue that Frank's biggest issue besides getting through his depression is dealing with over-the-top-optimistic-Richard. However, Frank finds solace in the fact that he is not suffering alone: 

Dwayne doesn't move. Frank glances at Dwayne, not knowing what to do. He seems to have met someone who is at least as unhappy as he is. This intrigues him.

The two form a fantastic and interesting friendship throughout the screenplay.

Dwayne Harvey

DWAYNE: You're not my family! I don't want to be your family! I hate you fucking people! I hate you! Divorce! Bankrupt! Suicide! You're losers! You're fucking losers!

Dwayne is a teenage boy who wants nothing more than to become a fighter pilot. He shows extreme levels of discipline and dedication by taking a vow of silence until he reaches his goal (something that earns a certain level of respect from Richard, whom Dwayne scorns). Dwayne is a big fan of Friedrich Nietzsche, who is famous for...uh... listen, I don't fully understand him, but the answers to all your Nietzsche-related questions can be found here. Dwayne spends most of the screenplay conveying his dialogue via a palm-sized notebook he keeps in his pocket.

Olive Harvey

OLIVE: Grandpa...? I'm kind of scared about tomorrow... I don't want to be a loser... Dad hates losers.

Olive is a young girl, in love with the idea of beauty pageants. She spends most of the screenplay searching for attention and approval from Richard. Olive embodies naive innocence. She has an especially close relationship with Grandpa. Richard accidentally (remember, he's not malicious) brings about her introduction to the world of Beauty-Trumps-All when she orders ice cream for breakfast (it's a seriously sickening scene in this screenplay that was done almost word-for-word in the movie; I put a link to the scene further down). This self-consciousness hits hard right before she goes on stage for the first part of the pageant, but she overcomes it--probably due to a mix of Richard's insistence on his never give up mantra and Grandpa's quote (see the "Edwin Harvey/Grandpa" section for that):

Olive finishes putting on her swim-suit. There's a full-length mirror on the back of the bathroom door. Olive turns around and reaches for the door knob. She stops. She steps back and looks at herself in the mirror. She turns sideways. She sucks her stomach in. This is the first time she's ever done this... Olive turns back frontal. She lets her stomach hang out. She's not happy with what she sees--also the first time...Olive stares at herself in the mirror. She's making up her mind about something (Winner or Loser?) Then, very determined, she walks out of the bathroom. 

Edwin Harvey/Grandpa

GRANDPA: You can't lose. You know why? Because a real loser isn't someone who doesn't win. A real loser is someone who's so afraid of not winning that they don't even try.

Grandpa is Richard's father who has been kicked out of four retirement homes, the most recent being Sunset Village. The reason? He picked up the attractive and totally-not-harmful habit of snorting heroin. He is proud of Olive and she has him wrapped around her finger (although not consciously; she's a very good-hearted little girl). 

Grandpa seems to have a very non-fatherly relationship with Richard until he witnesses Richard on the phone with Stan Grossman as he finds out that the deal is not going to go through:

GRANDPA: He's not getting it. Christ.

The script describes Grandpa as looking "troubled", showing that Richard's biggest obstacle is something that even his father is conscious of, and empathizes with Richard on. This moment during the second act adds HUGE depth to Grandpa's character. Once they're back on the road, Grandpa even talks to Richard about it:

GRANDPA: Listen, whatever happens--at least you tried to do something on your own, which is more than most people ever do, and I include myself in that category. It takes guts, and I'm proud of you for taking the chance, okay? 

RICHARD: Okay, Dad. Thanks. 

He tries to be cool and dismissive, but Grandpa just stands there. Finally, Richard turns and makes eye contact. Awkwardly, he offers his hand to Grandpa. They shake. 

RICHARD: Thanks, Dad.

I'm glad I did this exercise with Little Miss Sunshine because in all honesty, this screenplay was not fantastic. I mean, it was fine--but LMS is definitely a very visual story. The cinematography is phenomenal and I think it adds the depth to the story that it deserves. When you're dealing with character development as deeply as Arndt is in this script, I think the actors carry the brunt of it, and the movie was cast incredibly well. Each actor gives their respective character the vibrancy of a unique and real type of person that is very difficult to convey in a script. Literally every actor is 100% perfect, in my opinion, for the roles for which they were cast. Here's the best example of this; it's also one of my favorite scenes in the entire movie. The screenplay's version was weaker, because the scene (and really the whole story) requires incredibly raw emotion that a writer can't always provide, especially in a situation like this one. 

Of course, it could just be that this was a very early draft. There are a couple scenes that are almost word-for-word the same in the movie as they are in the screenplay, but the one I'm most happy about them keeping is the the ice cream scene (the link will take you to the scene from the movie, since it's almost identical to the screenplay and it's more fun than me just copying the script for you to read). As I've said before, this scene is sickening but it contributes to everyone's character--primarily Richard and Olive.

There are three things that were in the screenplay that I wish were in the movie:

FRANK: I don't know if you know this, but growing up? Your mom was the cool one. She turned me on to Proust. She could've done anything. 

DWAYNE (smirking, writing): What happened? 

FRANK: She had you, Dwayne.

I AM SO MAD THIS WASN'T IN THE MOVIE. Dwayne's character goes through some of the most fantastic growth I've ever seen in a character... but this extra bit reveals more about Sheryl than almost the entire script. She is consistently portrayed as a caregiver, and this amplifies that to no end.
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FRANK: How many days 'til you enlist? 

DWAYNE (writing): 623. 

FRANK (contemplating): Maybe I can adopt you.

My official argument is that this would strengthen the bond between Frank and Dwayne. My unofficial argument is that this is freaking hilarious. 
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Finally, the screenplay mentions a prop in one of the final scenes that, as far as I'm aware, didn't make it to the movie. The family is sitting together, handcuffed, waiting for the verdict after their actions at the pageant. Sheryl sees a "carton of tiaras" sitting in the office.

A carton of tiaras? If that doesn't take Richard's idea of "winning" and cause it to completely implode, I don't know what does. 

Richard believes that winning is the ultimate success--that it will make you the person you want to be, that it will cause you to stand out... yet there is a carton of tiaras. The screenplay and the movie start the same way: Olive is watching a video of Miss America being crowned. In the screenplay, Sheryl is staring at a carton of tiaras after the pageant. The tiara is supposed to show that you are special, yet the Little Miss Sunshine has a carton of them. Guess everyone's special, aren't they? Man, I wish that were in the movie.

So, conclusion: great movie, less-than-great screenplay.