Loathsome Richard (Kinnear) sincerely believes he makes lives better. He is a motivational speaker with big plans for his family and himself. Unfortunately, and somewhat ironically, his home-life is in free-fall: coke addiction, attempted suicide and self-enforced silence has congealed those around him. So begins one of the most original if unlikely comedies of the year. Although the themes are disturbingly black, directing duo of Faris and Dayton ground their story in a tangible reality. You know people like this, they live next door. They might even live with you.

Richard’s panicky self-help is tolerated by long-suffering wife Sheryl (Collette). She keeps the dysfunctional family together but when Richard’s creaky plans start to implode and show him for the loser he probably is, they turn to their only bright spot who, though over-weight and under-sighted, plans winning the pre-teen Miss Sunshine Beauty Pageant. A reality check for the entire family is waiting at the other end of a road trip.

Family drama is given such an adrenalin shot that it would be churlish to condemn Little Miss Sunshine’s familiar moments. In a lurid, often farcical world, the story examines human frailty as revealed when each character has their moment in the sun. Due to the strength of performance – Alan Arkin is delightfully frightening as a verbally abusive grandfather, Steve Carell tries on the tight fit of morose while Kinnear and Collette are formidable – Faris and Dayton also toy with the unexpected. Turning emotional tables we cheer at their failures and celebrate their losses. It’s here amid the faintly ridiculous that being family, being human, is explored with an affectionate, honest voice.

// COLIN FRASER