Honey Boy

Name: Honey Boy
Genre: Drama
Released: November 8, 2019
Duration: 94 min
Rating: 73
Cast: Byron Bowers, Clifton Collins Jr., Craig Stark, Dorian Brown, FKA Twigs

2019

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 41 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 67 Ratings

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7.4

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7.4	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 67 Ratings

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Movie Details & Credits

Amazon Studios | Release Date: November 8, 2019 | Not Rated

Starring: Byron Bowers, Clifton Collins Jr., Craig Stark, Dorian Brown, FKA Twigs, Laura San Giacomo, Lucas Hedges, Maika Monroe, Mario Ponce, Martin Starr, Natasha Lyonne, Noah Jupe, Paulina Bugembe, Shia LaBeouf

Movie Facts:

Shia LaBeouf based his screenplay on his own experiences, and plays a version of his own father.

Summary: A child actor works reconcile with his hard-drinking, law-breaking father.

Director: Alma Har'el

Genre(s): Drama

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 94 min

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Metascore

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Critic Reviews

100

Movie Nation Roger Moore

Dec 7, 2019

Honey Boy just tells us one story, with judgement and compassion, with an honesty that surprises and moves us. And it leaves it to us to decide if it was all worth it, if indeed the end justifies the means. You will never look at a child’s performance in a film or TV show the same way after this. Read full review

Joe Morgenstern

Nov 7, 2019

Before and after everything else, Honey Boy — James’s nickname for his son — is a movie worth seeing for its distinctive qualities, but it must also have been worth doing for its therapeutic effect. Filming well is the best revenge. Read full review

The Playlist Gregory Ellwood

Feb 1, 2019

Honey Boy may center on the impressive portrayals of three talented actors, but it’s the woman behind the camera that makes it soar. You simply can’t wait to see what she does next. Read full review

Matthew Passantino

Feb 1, 2019

The beautiful surprise of Honey Boy is it never feels like LaBeouf revels in the chance to put the spotlight on himself. He wrote the film while in rehab and every moment of the movie feels like an artist in search of a desperately craved and needed catharsis. Read full review

Ann Hornaday

Nov 12, 2019

Well, surprise: Honey Boy, Shia LaBeouf’s startlingly forthright, cathartic and beautifully acted movie based on his confusing and chaotic life as a child actor, winds up demonstrating what can go right, when the right elements are in place. Read full review

Jon Frosch

Feb 1, 2019

Honey Boy is not a self-justifying cri de coeur or a prankish exercise in narcissism, but a sensitive, sincere portrait of a child actor's dysfunctional upbringing and its devastating fallout. Read full review

Rex Reed

Nov 9, 2019

Honey Boy is a dolorous example of an alarming trend in modern movies — the miraculous ability of an infinitesimal talent to raise money for an obnoxious, self-indulgent film about his own life designed to appeal to absolutely nobody except the arrogant subject himself. In this instance, the jerky centerpiece in love with himself to the detriment of everyone in the audience is Shia LaBeouf. Read full review

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User Reviews

Compi24

Dec 17, 2019

The keystone, nay, the crown jewel in modern society's long-standing obsession with the borderline mythic construct of what we all consider Shia LaBeouf to be. Devoted performance artist to the very end, psychologically unwell egomaniac, or an honest to God broken human being looking toThe keystone, nay, the crown jewel in modern society's long-standing obsession with the borderline mythic construct of what we all consider Shia LaBeouf to be. Devoted performance artist to the very end, psychologically unwell egomaniac, or an honest to God broken human being looking to figure himself out just like the rest of us -- whatever your opinion of the man is, "Honey Boy" will work as something of a companion piece to it. More importantly, though, it's a deeply upsetting and impactful portrayal of a bankrupt relationship between a father and his son, and the litany of morally perverse push/pull mechanisms layered therein, featuring a revelatory, career-best performance from the true-to-life subject at the center of everything -- LaBeouf himself. Taking on the role of the complex and layered quasi-tormentor that inflicted so much intentional and unintentional damage upon him throughout his own childhood, some may call this the ultimate act of self-indulgence on the part of LaBeouf. I simply see it as someone desperately trying to sort through their past, so as to construct some semblance of a better future. Add in some stark camerawork and imagery from narrative filmmaking newcomer Alma Har'el and you have one of the year's most metaphysically gratifying, emotionally gripping character studies. To be quite honest, I'd even venture to call it a masterpiece.… Expand

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

Georgestrunk

Mar 30, 2020

Inspiring story must have been difficult to relive on screen .

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

Brent_Marchant

Nov 24, 2019

A surprisingly good offering about a successful child star and his troubled father who uses tough love (sometimes a little too tough) to see his son succeed and avoid the mistakes he made in his life, a story based on the life experience of writer-actor Shia LaBeouf and his own dad. ToldA surprisingly good offering about a successful child star and his troubled father who uses tough love (sometimes a little too tough) to see his son succeed and avoid the mistakes he made in his life, a story based on the life experience of writer-actor Shia LaBeouf and his own dad. Told through flashbacks, viewers see how a now-adult movie star dogged by substance abuse goes through rehab to deal with his past and seek resolution, a tale peppered with unusual and unexpected ups and downs, as well as a revelation that situations like this aren't necessarily black and white. Excellent performances abound, especially LaBeouf's portrayal of the father figure and by Lucas Hedges and Noah Jupe as the elder and younger actor. Inventive cinematography and creative musical montages help to set this one apart from other similar releases, evoking heartfelt but not manipulative emotional responses. Think of this as a grittier, gender-switch, working class version of "Post Cards from the Edge," and you've got the idea what's behind this one.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

GazMovies

Oct 11, 2020

This is the story of Shia LaBeouf and his relationship with his father. Shia LaBeouf is playing his Dad in this, it must have been hard for Shia to play his Dad who mentally abused him for years. This movie had me hooked from the very beginning the story is very emotional and honest you feelThis is the story of Shia LaBeouf and his relationship with his father. Shia LaBeouf is playing his Dad in this, it must have been hard for Shia to play his Dad who mentally abused him for years. This movie had me hooked from the very beginning the story is very emotional and honest you feel the sadness of a lonely frightened 12 year old boy who couldn't rely on his father to protect him. I did wonder why his Mam wasn't around more it didn't do a very good job of explaining why she wasn't there. I also thought the end of the movie could have been better. A very good movie with just a couple of little issues. Shia LaBeouf's performance in this was really emotional I think it deserved more recognition than it got at the awards last year.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

JordanLayton

Apr 28, 2020

Shia LaBeouf plays his own father in this clearly therapeutic film for him about his troubled childhood. I had a hard time fully enjoying this film on its own merits because of the fact that Shia wrote and starred in it as his own father. That fact stayed in the back of my head for much ofShia LaBeouf plays his own father in this clearly therapeutic film for him about his troubled childhood. I had a hard time fully enjoying this film on its own merits because of the fact that Shia wrote and starred in it as his own father. That fact stayed in the back of my head for much of the film and while it enhanced some scenes, I feel like it retracted from the film overall. It's hard to describe, but I got the slight feeling that Shia wrote this film as an explanation or perhaps even an excuse for his behavior. I know how unfair that is to him and that I should probably give him the benefit of the doubt that this was written purely to tell his story and for his own artistic fulfillment, but once that thought wormed itself into my head, certain scenes started to take another light. Regarding purely the film without any background, this is a competently made film with clear thought put into shot composition, story structure, and character portrayal of real people. Shia, Lucas Hedges, and the child actor, Noah Jupe, all gave great performances. Jupe in particular was a welcome surprise, rising above other child stars (ironically, something his character did as well).… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

Stream2BigScree

Jan 28, 2020

Honey Boy’s Got Some Daddy Issues

The Stream: Too self-referential for its own good. The Big Screen: Great chemistry between the two lead actors. The Final Bill: Almost like reading someone’s diary that you don’t really care about – intriguing but unsatisfying. -Trip Fontaine First, IHoney Boy’s Got Some Daddy Issues

The Stream: Too self-referential for its own good.

The Big Screen: Great chemistry between the two lead actors.

The Final Bill: Almost like reading someone’s diary that you don’t really care about – intriguing but unsatisfying.

-Trip Fontaine

First, I was tempted to title this review “Honey Boy Don’t Care,” but Honey Boy do care.

Yes, friends, we saw “the Shia LaBeouf movie”, Honey Boy, this weekend. It has been marketed as “the Shia LaBeouf movie”, and it plays like that in more than one way. Honey Boy is a fictionalized account of the life of the former child star struggling in rehab and his memory of working as a 12-year-old and being chaperoned by his unreliable, abusive, felon and recovering addict father. The film was written by LaBeouf through his most recent rehab stay; and it is directed by Alma Har’el. Necessarily, there is a metafictional aspect to the plot, and it becomes too self-referential for its own good.

Honey Boy sets the main character, played by Lucas Hedges, off on his destructive road to the rehab that will force him to deal with the effects of his time with his father. Hedges plays the 22-year-old LaBeouf surrogate named Otis that leads us to the meat of the movie. Noah Jupe plays the 12-year-old Otis, and LaBeouf, himself, plays the fictionalized version of his own father named James. Setting aside all of the self-referential, self-consciously, metafictional stuff, Jupe and LaBeouf are fantastic together. Jupe is heartbreaking in the role, at once loving and fearing his father. The relationship between father and son is fraught and heavy – each scene between the two is electric. LaBeouf is mesmerizing both because his portrayal is great, but also, because you know he’s channeling the character from real life experience. He expresses the damage, rage and empathy he must have been able to find in his father.

Now, what makes LaBeouf’s performance so good is also what makes some of the movie feel empty. The Lucas Hedges parts are supposed to be the raw portrayal of the consequences of the Jupe/LaBeouf parts of the film, but they fall flat. You always want more of Jupe and LaBeouf as their characters playing off each other. Hedges’ portray is one note and his rehab scenes aren’t particularly interesting.

There are some great sequences aside from that. The direction of Alma Har’el shows that she cares about all these characters. FKA Twigs has a special part that leads to a cool scene between her and Jupe. They’re just filled with innocence and fun. It very tender.

Honey Boy plays best when it’s just grappling with the tension between the demons of the father and the needs of the son. It is difficult to put aside the specter of Shia LaBeouf when he’s front-and-center for much of the movie, but that somehow seems to mostly affect the parts concerning the 22-year-old. If you don’t care about his journey in rehab, then those parts of the movie just don’t work. While I think that Honey Boy is a good movie particularly because of Shia LaBeouf and Noah Jupe, a trip to the theater isn’t warranted.… Expand

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

Awais007

Dec 8, 2019

I don't like this movie that's it. Story is normal. You can watch this movie if watched all previous movies.

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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