Beasts of the Southern Wild follows the story of a young girl named Hushpuppy. Maybe she has another name, but in the movie, that’s all we have. She lives with her father in a bayou called "The Bathtub" in a ramshackle collection of old trailers and other miscellaneous junkyard refuse where they raise chickens and other animals. The poverty of the family and the surrounding community is obvious from the opening scene where Hushpuppy carefully builds a mud mound for a little chick to drink out of. It's no dirtier than the beat-up surroundings Hushpuppy herself lives in.

But, of course, even though these people have nothing, and they live in filth, they have everything. You’re soon brought into the culture of the community, with parades and celebrations with everyone sharing everything and reveling in life. Everything is celebrated with alcohol and seafood, which seems a nice enough way to live.

One unique thing about this movie is its viewpoint. Everything is seen only from the perspective of Hushpuppy. In an early scene, she wakes up to find her father gone, and she steels herself that she has to be strong now, and fend for herself. She later finds him wearing what she thinks is a dress and a bracelet (her father obviously had a stay in the hospital) and tries to understand what’s happening. The whole movie is basically these bits and pieces of a childhood memory. It’s a bit like watching a reel of your own childhood memories and trying to figure out what really happened. Sometimes Hushpuppy’s dad will tell her something like "Your mom was so beautiful, she didn’t even have to turn on the stove." And you’ll see her mother walk by the stove as all the burners turn on and the water starts to boil on its own. It’s these kinds of moments that make you wonder if there’s some magic, or if it’s all childhood imagination that seems so real when you are a child. And so, even though the movie goes to some bizarre, crazy places, it all seems to make sense from that perspective.

The movie follows Hushpuppy’s father’s worsening medical condition, the effects of a hurricane, and the strange fighting relationship the two share. The whole movie goes in and out, following fight to fight. You know her father loves her, but he seems to show it between bouts of yelling and chasing and throwing things at her. He drinks constantly, but then again, the whole community does. When the hurricane hits, the water on their side of the levee rises. The people band together and decide to blow a hole in the levee to save themselves. They end up getting picked up by officials from the "dry side," who attempt to clean them up, and give them medical care. The wild inhabitants of The Bathtub want nothing of it, and stage a breakout.

I can’t say I loved Beasts of the Southern Wild. It’s a whole lot of sadness, and even the joyous parts seem tinged with this melancholy feel. Hey, I’m just not into being spoon-fed sadness. But it’s a good movie, if you’re into those kind of Sundance Film Festival award winners. It’s a movie about growing up, being strong, and accepting life and death, sure. The perspective is unique, and it’s definitely something different.There's probably some deep, underlying meaning that I'm supposed to be getting as well, but hey, maybe it's just not for me. I just can’t say I want to watch another minute of it to try to discover it.