Richard Linklater's "Boyhood" is a unique film for its concept of allowing its actors to age over the course of a twelve year period. The film captures the actors and the characters they play at various times over these twelve years to bring about an evocative, bittersweet epic on the trials and tribulations of its characters, the transition from childhood to adulthood and essence of life itself.
Ellar Coltrane plays Mason who is 6 years old at the start of the film. By the film's end Coltrane and Mason, his character, is now 18 and has a whole new outlook, new interests and priorities.
Some may criticize "Boyhood" for its lack of plot: it is really a series of vignettes and anecdotes. But, isn't this the way real life is? Does life actually come with a pre-packaged, neatly put-together, and tightly-structured plot? It is the freedom of this film and the way that it unfolds that makes it so compelling and truthful.
Linklater does a masterful job of capturing the flawed, eccentric nature of the way a life unfolds. He has been known for his preoccupation with aging and time with such films as "Dazed and Confused" and the trilogy of "Before Sunrise" films. With "Boyhood" he has taken the theme of the passage of time to a whole new, unprecedented level with a concept that evokes the "Up" documentary series in a fresh, original and fictionalized manner.
When you are finished watching this epic you are left with a sense of having witnessed something truly profound. You are given a glimpse into the life trajectory of a family and given insight into the nature of existence like never before in film history.
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