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All Together Now (2020)

Occasionally, All Together Now drifts into the needlessly quirky and sappy department but only briefly. With so many lousy movies who would've never been good enough for the theater have been getting the spotlight this year, this is a breath of fresh air.

Amber Appleton (Auli'i Cravalho) works hard at an old age home in the morning, teaches ESL class after school, also picks up shifts at a donut shop, and organizes the annual school variety show. When it's her turn to ask for help, she struggles. She and her mother, Becky (Justina Machado) have been sleeping in Becky’s school bus while they save up enough money for an apartment. When things go from bad to worse, Amber’s determination to stay strong might cost her dearly.

You fall for Cravalho's character right away. She’s bright and enthusiastic. Despite her situation, she remains hopeful, kind, and generous. You want her to make it out of this situation ok but over and over, the movie erodes your hopes. Being homeless on her own would be scary and sad enough. Somehow being with her mother feels worse. You can tell this is one of those mother-daughter relationships where mom has been a friend rather than a parent too many times and that Amber’s had to grow up fast to survive. That’s just the beginning. Life isn’t going to make things easy for Amber and you know she can only remain tough for so long. You just hope she’s in a better position than she is now when the hammer falls.

Thankfully, the young woman is surrounded by people who love her. Good for her, less good for the audience. Some of the friends add to the drama nicely, like Ty (Rhenzy Feliz). He cares deeply about her, possibly as more than a friend. Others either don’t add much to the story or feel unnecessary, like Joan (Carol Burnett), a sour resident of the old age home. Some others feel just a little bit too quirky for this kind of movie. Nothing about the story makes it inappropriate for teens or children but the bubble teacher, pun-obsessed friend, and others feel like an attempt to soften a drama that deals with real issues.

Some might say the film chickens out with its ending and they wouldn’t be wrong but it feels earned. Sometimes it isn’t critical for a story to reinvent the wheel and surprise you. Sometimes, you just want something nice, wholesome, and uplifting. That's what All Together Now aims to be, and succeeds at.

Based on the novel Sorta Like a Rockstar from Silver Linings Playbook author Matthew Quick, this is not in the same league. All Together Now benefits greatly from its strong performances from Justina Machado, Judy Reyes, and Auli’i Cravalho but the material they’re working with is quite good if a little soft during the end. This is the kind of movie the whole family can curl up around and enjoy. (October 17, 2020)