H Is for Happiness

H is for Happiness
Theatrical movie poster
Directed by
  • John Sheedy
Written byLisa Hoppe
Based onMy Life as an Alphabet
by Barry Jonsberg
Produced byJulie Ryan
Tenille Kennedy
Lisa Hoppe
Starring
CinematographyBonnie Elliott
Edited byJohanna Scott
Music byNerida Tyson-Chew
Production
companies
Cyan Films
The Koop
Screen Australia
ScreenWest
Film Victoria
Melbourne International Film Festival Premiere
Distributed byR & R Films for Universal Pictures
Release dates
Running time
103 minutes
CountryAustralia
LanguageEnglish
Box office$142,855

H is for Happiness is a 2019 Australian family film directed by John Sheedy, written by Lisa Hoppe, and starring Daisy Axon, Wesley Patten, Richard Roxburgh, Emma Booth, Joel Jackson, Deborah Mailman, Miriam Margolyes, Alessandra Tognini.

Premise

A twelve-year-old girl with boundless optimism and a unique view of the world is inspired by the strange new boy at school and sets out to mend her broken family – whatever it takes.[1]

Cast

Production

The script is based on the Australian young adult novel My Life as an Alphabet, by Barry Jonsberg, with the screenplay written by Lisa Hoppe.[2]

The film was shot in Albany, Western Australia from 12 November 2018 to 21 December 2018.[3]

Release

The film premiered at the Melbourne International Film Festival, where it won second place in the audience awards, and also screened at the Perth Festival.[4] It was distributed by R & R Films for Universal Pictures.[4][5]

Reception

Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that 77% of critics reviewed the film positively, with an average score of 6.7/10, based on 31 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads, "A feel-good family film that's as visually vibrant as its sunny outlook, H Is for Happiness finds a universal message in its young protagonist's journey".[6]

Alissa Simon of Variety said that the film, "Provides feel-good entertainment for the entire family without pandering – and definitely without sacrificing style or substance".[7] David Stratton wrote, "What could have been trite and mawkish turns out to be really rather engaging".[8]

Dov Kornits of Filmink called the film, "incredibly generous hearted, embracing the rich, the poor, the normal, the damaged, the eccentric, the humanity in equal measure".[9]

Andrew F. Peirce of The Curb said, "I can say with complete certainty that I have not smiled this hard after a film in a very long time."[10]

Conversely, Paul Byrnes of the Sydney Morning Herald argued, "Sheedy never finds the right tone for this ambitious project. Candice's florid language is great on paper, one of the main attractions of the book, but it's almost impossible to translate to the screen."[11]

Leigh Paatsch of the Herald Sun said, "Some nice work does continually surface during H is for Happiness, but so too do its niggling inconsistencies. A less-is-more approach might have been the better way to go."[12]

Box office

Box office sales were disappointing on its opening weekend, taking only A$96,000 across 158 screens; it was outdone in its pre-release screenings, taking A$117,000.[4]

References

  1. ^ "H is for Happiness". IMDb.
  2. ^ "THEATRICAL RELEASE: H is for Happiness". FilmInk. 17 January 2020. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
  3. ^ Fielding, Ashleigh (3 January 2019). "It's a wrap for Happiness". Great Southern Weekender. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  4. ^ a b c Groves, Don (10 February 2020). "Little joy for 'H is for Happiness' opening weekend". IF Magazine. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
  5. ^ "Cinema". R&R FILMS. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
  6. ^ "H Is for Happiness". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
  7. ^ Simon, Alissa (23 February 2020). "'H is for Happiness': Film Review". Variety. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  8. ^ Stratton, David (7 February 2020). "David Stratton has 'rarely seen a film this powerful'". The Australian. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  9. ^ Kornits, Dov (28 January 2020). "H is for Happiness". Filmink. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  10. ^ Peirce, Andrew (4 September 2019). "H IS FOR HAPPINESS CINEFEST OZ REVIEW – AN IMMEDIATE AUSTRALIAN CLASSIC". The Curb. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  11. ^ Byrnes, Paul (5 February 2020). "Smiles wear thin in new Australian film H is for Happiness". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  12. ^ Paatsch, Leigh (6 February 2020). "H IS FOR HAPPINESS? A IS FOR AVERAGE". Herald Sun (Australia). Retrieved 26 February 2020.