''Sunlight Jr.'' is a 2013 American

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

Laurie Collyer Laurie Collyer (born 1967) is an American film director and screenwriter. Biography Born in Summit, New Jersey, she grew up in Mountainside, New Jersey and attended Oberlin College. After working at a series of odd jobs, she went to film school ...

and starring

Matt Dillon Matthew Raymond Dillon (born February 18, 1964) is an American actor. He has received various accolades, including an Oscar and Grammy nomination. Dillon made his feature film debut in '' Over the Edge'' (1979) and established himself as a te ...

and

Naomi Watts Naomi Ellen Watts (born 28 September 1968) is a British actress. After her family moved to Australia, she made her film debut there in the drama '' For Love Alone'' (1986) and then appeared in three television series, '' Hey Dad..!'' (1990), '' ...

. The film is a poignant vignette following a couple expecting their first child. The couple must come to grips with their dire financial situation while in the midst of an unplanned pregnancy and its subsequent challenges. The film is inspired by

Barbara Ehrenreich Barbara Ehrenreich (, ; ; August 26, 1941 – September 1, 2022) was an American author and political activist. During the 1980s and early 1990s, she was a prominent figure in the Democratic Socialists of America. She was a widely read and awar ...

’s non-fiction book “

Nickel and Dimed ''Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America'' is a book written by Barbara Ehrenreich. Written from her perspective as an undercover journalist, it sets out to investigate the impact of the 1996 welfare reform act on the working poor in t ...

” which investigates many of the difficulties low-wage workers face.

Plot

Unmarried lovers Melissa, a convenience store clerk, and Richie, confined to a wheelchair since a motorcycle accident, try to make ends meet on her low wages and his disability check which he supplements with occasional handyman work. Their dire situation is illustrated early in the film when Richie is stranded in his car because he has run out of gas, yet he keeps spending money in bars. Soon they face eviction for non-payment of rent from the seedy motel in which they live, and an unplanned pregnancy for which they can't afford the medical bills. As a last resort they move in with Melissa’s alcoholic mother who makes money by taking foster children into her bedbug infested home.

Cast

as Melissa Winters *

as Richie Barnes *

Norman Reedus Norman Mark Reedus (born January 6, 1969) is an American actor best known for starring as Daryl Dixon in the AMC (TV channel), AMC horror drama series ''The Walking Dead (TV series), The Walking Dead'' (2010–2022). He also starred as Murphy Mac ...

as Justin *

Tess Harper Tessie Jean Harper (''née'' Washam; born August 15, 1950) is an American actress. She was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress for her first film role in 1983's ''Tender Mercies'', and for the Academy Award for Be ...

as Kathleen *

Antoni Corone Antoni Corone is an American actor and producer. He is perhaps best known for playing " Frank Urbano" in the American drama television series '' Oz'', Only Fools and Horses as Rico Ochetti and also being known for playing the role of "Captain W ...

as Edwin * Adrienne Lovette as Vivian * Vivian Fleming-Alvarez as Store Patron (uncredited) * Keith Hudson as Micky * Chloe Pombo as Foster Child * Gustavo Escobar as Jeral * Victoria Vodar as Pretty Woman (uncredited) * Rachael Thompson as Crime and Punishment Woman * Beth Marshall as Molly * Gabriel Alexander as Kyle (uncredited)

Reception

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 holds an average score of 61 out of 100, based on 19 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews." Ronnie Scheib of

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

praised the film, saying "Incandescent performances by Naomi Watts and Matt Dillon and an unerring grasp of strip-mall-dominated Florida distinguish Sunlight Jr." Frank Scheck of

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

wrote: "Naomi Watts and Matt Dillon bring impressive emotional and physical heat to Sunlight Jr., director/screenwriter Laurie Collyer’s beautifully observed character study of an unmarried couple living on the economic margins."

Awards

The

Tribeca Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by TriBeCa Productions, Tribeca Productions. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive progra ...

nominated writer direction

in the category "Best Narrative Feature".

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sunlight Jr 2013 films 2013 drama films American drama films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films