''Little Boy'' is a 2015 World War II
war
War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...
-
drama film
In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...
directed by
Alejandro Gómez Monteverde. The screenplay is by Monteverde and Pepe Portillo, and the film was produced by
Eduardo Verástegui
José Eduardo Verástegui Córdoba (; born May 21, 1974) is a Mexican producer and actor. He was part of band Kairo and later a solo music career, before he started appearing in Mexican telenovelas and eventually feature films like ''Chasing Papi ...
and Leo Severino, and edited by Joan Sobel and Fernando Villena. The film stars Jakob Salvati,
Emily Watson
Emily Margaret Watson (born 14 January 1967) is an English actress. She began her career on stage and joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1992. In 2002, she starred in productions of ''Twelfth Night'' and ''Uncle Vanya'' at the Donmar Wa ...
,
David Henrie
David Clayton Henrie ( ; born July 11, 1989) is an American actor, writer, and director. He is noted for playing Ted Mosby's future son Luke on ''How I Met Your Mother'' and Justin Russo in ''Wizards of Waverly Place'', as well as starring in ...
,
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa (Japanese: 田川 洋行, ''Tagawa Hiroyuki''; born September 27, 1950) is a Japanese-born American actor, film producer, and martial artist.
Often cast as villains, he is known for his film roles in ''The Last Emperor'' ...
,
Michael Rapaport
Michael David Rapaport (born March 20, 1970) is an American actor and comedian. Beginning his career in the early 1990s, he has made over 100 appearances in film and television. His film roles include ''True Romance'' (1993), ''Higher Learning' ...
,
Ben Chaplin
Ben Chaplin (born Benedict John Greenwood; 31 July 1969)''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1916–2005.''; at ancestry.com is a British actor. He is best known for his roles in films, including '' The Truth About Cats & Dogs' ...
,
Eduardo Verástegui
José Eduardo Verástegui Córdoba (; born May 21, 1974) is a Mexican producer and actor. He was part of band Kairo and later a solo music career, before he started appearing in Mexican telenovelas and eventually feature films like ''Chasing Papi ...
,
Ted Levine
Frank Theodore Levine (born May 29, 1957) is an American actor. He is best known for playing the roles of Buffalo Bill (character), Buffalo Bill in the film ''The Silence of the Lambs (film), The Silence of the Lambs'' (1991) and Leland Stottle ...
,
Abraham Benrubi
Abraham Rubin Hercules Benrubi (born October 4, 1969) is an American actor. He is known for his appearances as Jerry Markovic on the long-running medical television drama '' ER'', for his first role as Larry Kubiac on the series '' Parker Lewis C ...
, and
Tom Wilkinson
Thomas Geoffrey Wilkinson (born 5 February 1948)Born January–March 1948, according to the ''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1916–2005.''; at ancestry.com is an English actor of film, television, and stage. He has rece ...
. The title is a reference to Little Boy, the code name for the
atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, as well as a reference to the main character Pepper's height. The film was co-produced by Metanoia Films and Santa Fé Films and was released on April 24, 2015, by
Open Road Films
Open Road Films, LLC (formerly Global Road Entertainment from 2017 to 2018) is an American film production and distribution company based in Los Angeles, California. It was founded by Eric Hohl on March 26, 2011 as a joint venture between the t ...
. It was released on DVD and Blu-ray on August 18, 2015, by
Universal Pictures Home Entertainment
Universal Pictures Home Entertainment (formerly Universal Studios Home Entertainment, Universal Studios Home Video, MCA/Universal Home Video, MCA Home Video, MCA Videodisc and MCA Videocassette, Inc.) is the home video distribution division of Am ...
. The film received negative reviews from mainstream critics and earned $17 million on a $20 million budget. An Indian adaptation of the film, titled ''
Tubelight'' and starring
Salman Khan
Abdul Rashid Salim Salman Khan (; 27 December 1965) is an Indian actor, film producer, and television personality who works in Hindi films. In a film career spanning over thirty years, Khan has received numerous awards, including two Nation ...
in the lead role, opened to mixed reviews in 2017.
Plot
In the seaside town of O'Hare,
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
, an 8-year-old boy who is small for his age, Pepper Flynt Busbee (Jakob Salvati), has a very close relationship with James, his loving father, which begins from the very moment he is born when his father cradles him in his arms and notices how small he is. When Pepper asks a doctor if he has
dwarfism
Dwarfism is a condition wherein an organism is exceptionally small, and mostly occurs in the animal kingdom. In humans, it is sometimes defined as an adult height of less than , regardless of sex; the average adult height among people with dw ...
, the doctor tells him, "For now, Pepper, let's just say you're a 'little boy'," this expression would become Pepper's nickname. He would learn to despise those two words and always make a problem when someone would call out his nickname.
However, when
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
begins, Pepper's older brother is declared ineligible for military service because of
flat feet
Flat feet (also called pes planus or fallen arches) is a postural deformity in which the arches of the foot collapse, with the entire sole of the foot coming into complete or near-complete contact with the ground. Sometimes children are born ...
and their father joins in his place, which devastates Pepper. Not long after his father leaves for war, Pepper hears the Bible verse, "Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move" (Matthew 17:20), he becomes determined to get enough faith to bring his father home. Nevertheless, as his friend and mentor Father Oliver tells him, faith is useless to anyone who harbors hatred. Father Oliver tells Pepper to befriend a Japanese man named Hashimoto.
At first, the
anti-Japanese sentiment
Anti-Japanese sentiment (also called Japanophobia, Nipponophobia and anti-Japanism) involves the hatred or fear of anything which is Japanese, be it its culture or its people. Its opposite is Japanophilia.
Overview
Anti-Japanese sentim ...
Pepper has internalized – which has become prevalent in his society – makes him hesitant to follow this advice, but as he gets to know Hashimoto, he begins to value their friendship and learns from Hashimoto to stand up to those who bully him about his height. Father Oliver gave Pepper
a list of tasks to complete. When Pepper's father is reported
missing in action
Missing in action (MIA) is a casualty classification assigned to combatants, military chaplains, combat medics, and prisoners of war who are reported missing during wartime or ceasefire. They may have been killed, wounded, captured, ex ...
, Pepper's mother (
Emily Watson
Emily Margaret Watson (born 14 January 1967) is an English actress. She began her career on stage and joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1992. In 2002, she starred in productions of ''Twelfth Night'' and ''Uncle Vanya'' at the Donmar Wa ...
) struggles to keep her family together in the face of these overwhelming hardships. His brother London, and Sam – one of the townspeople that lost a son – go to Hashimoto's home and attack him one night, leading to his being hospitalized. London is initially arrested, but Hashimoto decides not to press charges and he is released.
An Army representative brings the news that Pepper's father has been killed and is buried in the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
. Hashimoto goes to the memorial service at the O'Hare Cemetery to pay his respects. Pepper and Hashimoto sit on a bench and discuss their mutual losses of family and believing in something. Pepper goes back to the cemetery to visit his father's grave and place the list on top of his grave marker. Pepper and his mother go to the town doctor; Dr. Fox tries to hit on her and invite himself over to the house that evening under the pretext of talking about what could possibly be the cause of Pepper's short stature.
Later that day, a spokesperson from the Army arrives to tell her that her husband didn't die after all. The man that actually died had stolen Pepper's father's boots, with his dog tags attached to the laces, when he fell after being shot, so he was misidentified as Pepper's father. The family leaves town to visit James in the hospital and Pepper takes him the boots that James had been eyeing for some time, which Pepper bought for him after he went off to war. Upon arriving, they realize that James has suffered from mild amnesia due to an injury to the head. However, Pepper calls his father by his longtime nickname, "partner", and presents him his gift. James holds the boots, then hugs Pepper and touches the faces of the rest of his family. They all kneel around his chair and share a group hug, before driving him back to O'Hare.
Cast
*Jakob Salvati as Pepper Flynt Busbee
*
Emily Watson
Emily Margaret Watson (born 14 January 1967) is an English actress. She began her career on stage and joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1992. In 2002, she starred in productions of ''Twelfth Night'' and ''Uncle Vanya'' at the Donmar Wa ...
as Emma Busbee
*
David Henrie
David Clayton Henrie ( ; born July 11, 1989) is an American actor, writer, and director. He is noted for playing Ted Mosby's future son Luke on ''How I Met Your Mother'' and Justin Russo in ''Wizards of Waverly Place'', as well as starring in ...
as London Busbee
*
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa (Japanese: 田川 洋行, ''Tagawa Hiroyuki''; born September 27, 1950) is a Japanese-born American actor, film producer, and martial artist.
Often cast as villains, he is known for his film roles in ''The Last Emperor'' ...
as Hashimoto
*
Michael Rapaport
Michael David Rapaport (born March 20, 1970) is an American actor and comedian. Beginning his career in the early 1990s, he has made over 100 appearances in film and television. His film roles include ''True Romance'' (1993), ''Higher Learning' ...
as James Busbee
*
Ben Chaplin
Ben Chaplin (born Benedict John Greenwood; 31 July 1969)''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1916–2005.''; at ancestry.com is a British actor. He is best known for his roles in films, including '' The Truth About Cats & Dogs' ...
as Ben Eagle
*
Ted Levine
Frank Theodore Levine (born May 29, 1957) is an American actor. He is best known for playing the roles of Buffalo Bill (character), Buffalo Bill in the film ''The Silence of the Lambs (film), The Silence of the Lambs'' (1991) and Leland Stottle ...
as Sam
*
Ali Landry
Ali Germaine Landry (born July 21, 1973) is an American actress, model, and beauty pageant titleholder who won Miss USA 1996. She played Rita Lefleur on the UPN sitcom '' Eve'' and was the Doritos Girl in a 1998 Super Bowl commercial. In 1998, ...
as Ava
*
Kevin James
Kevin George Knipfing (born April 26, 1965), better known by his stage name Kevin James, is an American comedian and actor. In television, James played Doug Heffernan on ''The King of Queens'' from 1998 to 2007, and receieved a Primetime Emmy ...
as Dr. Fox
*
Tom Wilkinson
Thomas Geoffrey Wilkinson (born 5 February 1948)Born January–March 1948, according to the ''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1916–2005.''; at ancestry.com is an English actor of film, television, and stage. He has rece ...
as Fr. Oliver
*
Toby Huss
Tobias Huss (born December 9, 1966) is an American actor, known for portraying Artie in the Nickelodeon series '' The Adventures of Pete & Pete'' (1993–1996). He is also known for his voice-over work on the long-running animated series ''King of ...
as Colonel Bob
*
Abraham Benrubi
Abraham Rubin Hercules Benrubi (born October 4, 1969) is an American actor. He is known for his appearances as Jerry Markovic on the long-running medical television drama '' ER'', for his first role as Larry Kubiac on the series '' Parker Lewis C ...
as Teacup
*Kelly Greyson as Tyra
*Sam Kindseth as Ronnie
*
Eduardo Verástegui
José Eduardo Verástegui Córdoba (; born May 21, 1974) is a Mexican producer and actor. He was part of band Kairo and later a solo music career, before he started appearing in Mexican telenovelas and eventually feature films like ''Chasing Papi ...
as Fr. Crispin
*James DuMont as Harvey
*
Candice Azzara as Bertha
*Lukas Behnken as Leonard Rice
*
Mary Stein as Martha
*
Eijiro Ozaki as Masao Kume
*Winston James Francis as Bukha
*Masami Kosaka as Commander Tokyo Joe
*
Theodora Greece
Princess Theodora of Greece and Denmark (, born 9 June 1983), also known under her stage name Theodora Greece, is a British actress and member of the former Greek royal family and the Danish royal family.
Biography Early life
Theodora was ...
as Eliza
Production
On August 4, 2011, it was announced that
Metanoia Films would produce the film, with
Ben Chaplin
Ben Chaplin (born Benedict John Greenwood; 31 July 1969)''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1916–2005.''; at ancestry.com is a British actor. He is best known for his roles in films, including '' The Truth About Cats & Dogs' ...
and
Emily Watson
Emily Margaret Watson (born 14 January 1967) is an English actress. She began her career on stage and joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1992. In 2002, she starred in productions of ''Twelfth Night'' and ''Uncle Vanya'' at the Donmar Wa ...
joining the cast. On August 6, 2011,
Kevin James
Kevin George Knipfing (born April 26, 1965), better known by his stage name Kevin James, is an American comedian and actor. In television, James played Doug Heffernan on ''The King of Queens'' from 1998 to 2007, and receieved a Primetime Emmy ...
,
David Henrie
David Clayton Henrie ( ; born July 11, 1989) is an American actor, writer, and director. He is noted for playing Ted Mosby's future son Luke on ''How I Met Your Mother'' and Justin Russo in ''Wizards of Waverly Place'', as well as starring in ...
and Jakob Salvati joined the cast. On June 20, 2014,
Open Road Films
Open Road Films, LLC (formerly Global Road Entertainment from 2017 to 2018) is an American film production and distribution company based in Los Angeles, California. It was founded by Eric Hohl on March 26, 2011 as a joint venture between the t ...
picked up distribution rights to the film. On July 2, 2014, it was announced that the film would be released on February 27, 2015.
On April 22, 2015, producer and star Eduardo Verástegui told the
Catholic News Agency
The Catholic News Agency (CNA) is a private institution of EWTN that provides news related to the Catholic Church to the global anglophone audience. Founded in 2004 as the English section of the worldwide ACI Group, it is headquartered in Denver ...
, "It was going to be a very, very difficult film to produce, but at the same time we were in love with the story which is about believing in the impossible." It was clear to Verástegui that it would be very difficult to produce an independent film totally outside the system. More than 1,000 children were auditioned for the role of Pepper. Eventually, Jakob Salvati won the role at seven years of age, even though he had only acted on television. During the film, Salvati was frequently found praying by himself that the scene would go well. Actor
David Henrie
David Clayton Henrie ( ; born July 11, 1989) is an American actor, writer, and director. He is noted for playing Ted Mosby's future son Luke on ''How I Met Your Mother'' and Justin Russo in ''Wizards of Waverly Place'', as well as starring in ...
was seeking such a film as this one after emerging as a Disney star, and in the process of returning to the
Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
. Henrie told BreatheCast.com that the film's producers were instrumental in his conversion. "I will forever be grateful for Little Boy because it was the film that saved my life," he said. "The theme really spoke to my heart in a big way. I think it's a very foundational element and theme that everyone deals with, do you put your faith in yourself to find your own existence or do you put your theme in something bigger than you?"
Release
The film was theatrically released on April 24, 2015 by
Open Road Films
Open Road Films, LLC (formerly Global Road Entertainment from 2017 to 2018) is an American film production and distribution company based in Los Angeles, California. It was founded by Eric Hohl on March 26, 2011 as a joint venture between the t ...
and was released on DVD and Blu-ray on August 18, 2015 by
Universal Pictures Home Entertainment
Universal Pictures Home Entertainment (formerly Universal Studios Home Entertainment, Universal Studios Home Video, MCA/Universal Home Video, MCA Home Video, MCA Videodisc and MCA Videocassette, Inc.) is the home video distribution division of Am ...
.
Reception
''Little Boy'' has received negative reviews from mainstream critics. On
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, the film has a rating of 24% based on 54 reviews from critics, with an average rating of 4.43/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Well-meaning but manipulative on a horrifically misguided scale, ''Little Boy'' is the rare faith-based film that many viewers may find legitimately offensive." On
Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
, the film has a score of 30 out of 100, based on 24 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".
Alan Scherstuhl, writing for ''
The Village Voice
''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...
'', describes ''Little Boy'' as a "cynical, poisonous, deeply stupid film." Christy Lemire wrote in ''
RogerEbert.com'', "even by this genre's standards, the sentimental way the story twists and ends is as shameless as it is maudlin." Michael Phillips, writing for the
Chicago Tribune
The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...
, criticized the use of the
bombing of Japan
Air raids conducted by Allied forces on Japan during World War II caused extensive destruction to the country's cities and killed between 241,000 and 900,000 people. During the first years of the Pacific War these attacks were limited to the ...
, and wrote, "Little Boy answers a question most tear-jerkers wouldn't have the nerve to ask: Can the bombing of Hiroshima be manipulated narratively, if briefly, into a position of warming our hearts? The answer is no." Tim Drake of the ''
National Catholic Register
The ''National Catholic Register'' is a Catholic newspaper in the United States. It was founded on November 8, 1927, by Matthew J. Smith as the national edition of the '' Denver Catholic Register''. The ''Registers current owner is the Ete ...
'' said the film "mirrors the Holy Trinity. ...
akobSalvati brings an endearing delight to his role. He is a pleasure to watch. ... The film is a nostalgic parable about faith. Yet it's not what would be described as a faith-based film. Rather, it's a mature story containing Catholic elements. It treats both the faith of Father Oliver and the lack of religious faith of Hashimoto with respect." However, Drake does object to the way in which it treats the atomic bombing of Japan.
Kathryn Jean Lopez of the ''
National Review
''National Review'' is an American conservative editorial magazine, focusing on news and commentary pieces on political, social, and cultural affairs. The magazine was founded by the author William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955. Its editor-in-chief i ...
'' said that the film's message is "subtle and luminous", and the film is "remarkably sweet in the least saccharine but also most humane way... a tender movie that inspires hope." She summarized it as a "heart-wrenching and encouraging movie dealing with life and death, and with faith, hope and love."
Adam R. Holz, editor for the entertainment reviewing arm of ''
Focus On The Family
Focus on the Family (FOTF or FotF) is a fundamentalist Protestant organization founded in 1977 in Southern California by James Dobson, based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The group is one of a number of evangelical parachurch organizations ...
'' ''
Plugged In
Focus on the Family (FOTF or FotF) is a fundamentalist Protestant organization founded in 1977 in Southern California by James Dobson, based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The group is one of a number of evangelical parachurch organizations t ...
'', reviews: "''Little Boy'', then, can certainly serve as a solid (and delightfully entertaining!) launching pad for discussions about what it means to believe, and how we navigate the specifics of why we believe what we believe about miracles and God's sustaining hand in the midst of danger and tragedy. It also powerfully addresses the way we (should) treat those we think are our enemies."
References
External links
*
* {{IMDb title, 1810683, Little Boy
2015 films
2015 comedy-drama films
American comedy-drama films
Films about the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
Films set in 1945
Films set in California
Films set on the home front during World War II
Films shot in Mexico
Open Road Films films
Japan in non-Japanese culture
2010s English-language films
2010s American films