[Review] Troop Zero(2020) {7/10}

Directed by British female duo Bert & Bertie, from a screenplay by Lucy Alibar and inspired by Alibar's 2010 play Christmas and Jubilee Behold The Meteor Shower, the film stars Viola Davis (Miss Rayleen), Mckenna Grace (Christmas Flint), Jim Gaffigan (Ramsey Flint), Mike Epps (Dwayne Champaign), Charlie Shotwell (Joseph) and Allison Janney (Miss Massey).

The plot follows Christmas Flint (McKenna Grace) who is enamored with the cosmos as TROOP ZERO launches. It's 1977, the spacecraft Voyagers I and II have announced that they'll be recording voices and sounds of Earth for a "Golden Record" to be taken on their next exploration. The spectacular news for Christmas is that at the next Birdie Scout Jamboree, a winning troop will be selected for inclusion on that record. How amazing would it be if her recently-deceased mom, whom she believes is out among the stars, could hear her voice and connect with her? Of course, Christmas, an outsider among her peers, isn't a Birdie Scout. The troop in her economically-eclectic neighborhood, headed by the prim and proper Miss Massey (Allison Janney),turns her down, but the determined girl refuses to give up. She enlists a team of other outsiders a spunky girl and her physically-dominating sidekick; a devout Christian with one eye; and a boy whose gender is evolving and creates a troop of her own. Christmas coerces her lawyer dad's assistant, the uncompromising Miss Rayleen (Viola Davis), to be their "scout mother," and the troop is established and derisively named Troop Zero by the Birdie Scout establishment. All the kids have to do now is earn the necessary badges, wow the judges at the jamboree, and win.

An endearingly-gifted young leading lady, sparkling supporting performances, and a devilishly irreverent take on the underdog story make this period movie funny, surprising, and notably current. McKenna Grace's Christmas Flint is an unforgettable character, and she's surrounded by a group of young actors who seem remarkably at ease as they inhabit their eccentric roles. Jim Gaffigan is wonderful as Christmas's beleaguered widowed dad; Viola Davis and Allison Janney make terrific sparring partners. Co-directors Bert & Bertie, have succeeded in making a family movie with just enough grit it's mostly wholesome but it has its moments to make it special. Troop Zero first appeared in the 2019 Sundance Film Festival.

Troop Zero is now available on Amazon Prime Video.