Parents' Guide to Camera

This surrogate father/grandfather tale is predictable yet still at times emotional. The various elements of Camera work together to craft a sense of a family and a community in transition. While Oscar and his mom are finding their places on their own and in their new town, their larger community is trying to figure out its own future as its traditional fishing existence is dying out. The melodrama lays out its main point in an opening voiceover lamenting how adults lose their sense of wonder and splendor as they get lost in ambition, fear, and control. However, the film's real focus is Oscar.

Surrounding the fatherless and speechless boy is a heavily male town—beyond Evelyn, there are very few females with speaking roles in this film. There also aren't a lot of adults behaving like, well, adults you'd want around your child. Oscar's relationship with Bridges' Eric is sweet, although scenes like the old man dancing in his workshop or losing his temper while drunk and grieving feel clichéd. Gabriel captures Oscar's emotions with no speaking lines and manages to only minimally over-emote. The same can't be said for the film's heavy-handed musical score, which switches notably between inspirational chords and meant-to-be-tense drums.