CALIFORNIA SCENARIO is playing at SBIFF (Santa Barbara International Film Festival), and I had the opportunity to see an early look. Here’s my spoiler-free take:
CALIFORNIA SCENARIO captures the theme of generational trauma while feeling like a feature-film version of THIS IS US. And this makes sense since director/writer, James Takata, was in the camera department for THIS IS US on over 82 episodes, and it features Jon “Miguel” Huertas from what I still consider one of the greatest network series of all-time. While SCENARIO pulls at the heartstrings, it doesn’t quite hit the same Kishi Bashi (”Manchester”) style high notes that it inspires to reach.
The opening of SCENARIO gave me some serious BEFORE SUNRISE-like vibes. It did this with Jacob (Will Yun Lee) and Laura (Abby Miller), who are sitting on a bench saying the lines, “One day, I’ll see you in a little coffee shop in Pasadena… and we will remember we crossed paths before… but not today.” It has the ache that Richard Linklater captures: people trying to connect and heal. Yet this film is from some of the people who brought audiences THIS IS US. Which means it quickly began making jumps between multiple characters and timelines. As the brush strokes grew broader in this film, I longed for it to return to those two characters on the bench… looking to heal their generational trauma.
The entire ensemble is fantastic in CALIFORNIA SCENARIO, yet Will Yun Lee and Abby Miller steal the show. It’s hard for independent features to make you care instantly about damaged protagonists. And, audiences will relate to both of their stories. The quiet father figure who didn’t reveal a family’s secret, and a loving mother, who did her best not to pass her trauma down to her daughter, but ends up failing. It’s beautifully poetic and bittersweet to watch.
Final Thought: CALIFORNIA SCENARIO is a great attempt to capture the storytelling style of THIS IS US and mix it with an emotionally draining tale of generational trauma (think SENTIMENTAL VALUE minus the house). It has me excited that the THIS IS US story structure is still alive, thanks to James Takata, and I can’t wait to see what he writes/directs next.
CALIFORNIA SCENARIO has its SBIFF premiere on Sat 2/7 – 3:00 PM
