We can all remember Shia LaBeouf from Disney Channel's Even Stevens or Transformers. But, you definitely haven't seen him like this. Shia Labeouf wrote and starred in the film Honey Boy. A retelling of his life and his relationship with his father, James Lore. Shia also takes on the role of his own father in the film. In the movie, the character of Shia is named Otis, you can see the timeline and vague reenactments of what time periods he was portraying.
The movie shows two different timelines, one as 12 year old Otis, played by Noah Jupe (you might recognize him from the movie Wonder). And 22 year old Otis, played by Lucas Hedges (you might recognize him from Lady Bird and Manchester by the Sea). We start off the movie with 22 year old Otis getting arrested and ending up in a rehabilitation facility. There he has to confront the childhood memories he desperately was hoping to leave behind. As 22 year old Otis is sorting through these memories, we see 12 year old Otis going through it. I don't want to tell too much of his story here because it is extremely powerful through Shia's own words.
If there was only one word I could use to describe this movie it would be "masterpiece." It's rare to see a movie this raw and real. Especially, rare to see someone portraying their own childhood trauma through the eyes of their father. Shia's performance was chilling and incredible. The thought of how much mental and emotional cartwheels he had to go through to play this role is even harder to imagine. And let me just say, Shia's father is not a sweet and cuddly person. He is hard and cold in one breath as he is encouraging in another.
Honey Boy has given Shia Labeouf a new platform to show his talent. He's not the kid we all saw in the tabloids, he has matured into a true artist. I can't wait to see where Shia's career takes him next. I highly, highly recommend seeing Honey Boy. It's one of the best movies I've seen in a while.
9/10
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