Kajillionaire (2020) Movie Review
Kajillionaire is the latest movie from writer and director Miranda July. It focuses on an odd family of scam artists. The parents Robert (Richard Jenkins) and Theresa (Debra Winger) don’t have jobs and steal things and run scams to survive. Their daughter Old Dolio (Evan Rachel Wood), and yes that truly is her actual name, participates in the scams and they split everything evenly. The family lives next door to some kind of bubble factory and has to scrape bubbles off their wall each day. Despite the somewhat lackluster living quarters, they are behind in rent and the landlord says they have to come up with $1,500 in two weeks.
The family begins to hatch a scheme to get the large amount of money quickly. They previously won three free flights to New York and Old Dolio pretends to lose her luggage to collect the insurance money which happens to come out to be about $1,500. On the flight back Robert and Theresa sit next to a talkative and outgoing woman named Melanie (Gina Rodriguez). She quickly becomes part of their schemes and Old Dolio feels a bit threatened by her. Melanie is chatty, confident, and compelling while Old Dolio is awkward and shy. But instead of driving a wedge between them, July allows them to become friends and then later on, more than friends. Their tiny, understated love story builds throughout the movie and fills the one hour and forty-five minute run time with subtle glances and sweet interactions.
At one point, Melanie makes tiny pancakes for Old Dolio because she’s never had them before. As Old Dolio tries it Melanie remarks, “Most happiness in life comes from dumb things.” July is able to infuse the more ridiculous moments of Kajillionaire with moments like these that are oddly introspective. Old Dolio and her parents are absurd and will do just about anything to make a buck, as long as it isn’t honest work. At one point in the movie, Old Dolio comes home with a toothpick and tells her parents some guy gave it to her. Robert responds saying, “When a man gives you wood, anything made of wood, he’s saying ‘You give me wood.’” The moments are at times so awkward you aren’t sure whether to laugh or cringe. But that’s July’s style and it works so well with this story.
Jenkins, Woods, and Rodriguez stand out here. Woods adopts a low voice that sounds nothing like her and has long stringy hair that she often hides behind. Jenkins pulls off the kooky but somewhat charming and likeable scam artist. And Rodriguez absolutely nails the charming but slightly bemused outsider looking in on this somewhat abnormal family dynamic. Woods and Rodriguez make it somehow believable that Melanie and Old Dolio have a connection and understand each other in a way that others might not. You feel for the intensely odd Old Dolio who has never been given an ounce of affection from her parents. She desperately longs for it and you’ll wait with bated breath to see if Melanie will be the one to give it to her. Kajillionaire is wacky and wild and frankly the best I’ve seen from July. It’s my surprise new favorite of the year and I thoroughly enjoyed watching it.
Film or Movie: Film
You’ll like this film:
1. If you’re a fan of July’s work
2. If you like understated romances
3. If you’re into weird movies
