Often times, the best movies are those that truly depict real life. We believe the story and, most importantly, we believe the characters. It's one of the trickiest and most nuanced parts of filmmaking, obviously, or else every flick would be great. Richard Linklater — he of Before Sunrise, Before Sunset, and Before Midnight fame — is one of the best in the biz at harnessing reality, and he's done it again in a big way with his latest movie.
Boyhood was conceived of over a decade ago, and shot in bits and pieces over the last 12 years. The movie follows one family through the childhood and adolescence of a son and captures the essence of, well, boyhood. Linklater somehow convinced stars Ethan Hawke and Patricia Arquette to film every summer for 12 years, and he cast Ellar Coltrane to play the lead at just seven years old (he's a teenager by the movie's end).
What results is a coming-of-age tale in the highest form, because we're actually watching the fictional family grow. Needless to say, it's pretty heavy and pretty darn striking. Boyhood made big waves at this year's Sundance fest, and will hit theaters in July.