Happy Face (2018) User Reviews

Haunting And Original

[socrates4 · 7/10 · 7 March 2019]

HAPPY FACE tells a story like nothing I have ever seen before. It is about a young man who chooses to attend support meetings for those with facial disfigurations. We see people with real deformities and disfigurations. For that reason the film feels very real.

There is an unshakeable feeling of reality throughout the film, but still a strange surreal undertone that never lets up. It's a combination that I do not recall ever having experienced before. It feels totally original for that reason. The acting, directing, and camerawork are all great. The story drags a bit at certain points, but overall it is still worth watching. Recommend.

Happy Face is an entertaining way to learn how to appreciate inner beauty

[dwboloten · 10/10 · 15 April 2019]

Hi my name is Daniel Boloten and I play the character Dangerous Dave in the movie Happy Face. I have survived a traumatic head injury when I crashed my race car in 2007 and I am fortunate to have recovered very well although I did not fully appreciate just how fortunate I am until I began to work on this project. Each and every member of the cast are an interesting person with a unique story and we all have one thing in common: a visible physical difference. What makes this motion picture phenomenal is how little dialog was scripted and how much was improvised as we progressed. This authenticity is too genuine to be scripted and the way that we have all been able to tell the story while adding our own input makes for a magical experience in my opinion. I myself have laughed and cried through the film and it has taught me that true beauty is inside us all regardless of our appearances. I have learned a lot from both working on the film and watching the film and I recommend that you see it if you get the chance.

"This is getting too dangerous for Dangerous Dave!".

Interesting

[BandSAboutMovies · 5/10 · 4 January 2021]

Stan has a complex life. He's dealing with a manipulative cancer-stricken mother and in order to find a place to fit in, he's taped up his face to distort it, which allows him to join a therapy group for those with disfigured faces.

The other encounter group patients soon discover his trickery, but they allow him to stay in the hopes that he learns to cope with the death of his mother while he shows them how they can use their ugliness to feel better about themselves.

Director and co-writer Alexandre Franchi has hired first-time actors with real facial deformities to give this movie a dramatic edge that it may not have otherwise. It never feels like a sideshow. Instead, this feels real and lived in.

As someone that used role playing games to get through my high school years, the fact that the members of the group play also comes off as authentic. It allows them to become someone they aren't. Someone different. And perhaps have power in a world where the ugly are often the strongest.