The Unbreakable Boy, 2025.
Written and Directed by Jon Gunn.
Starring Zachary Levi, Jacob Laval, Gavin Warren, Meghann Fahy, Bruce Davis, Kellen Martelli, Roy Jackson Miller, Elle Adler, Patricia Heaton, Kellen Martelli, Pilot Bunch, Drew Powell, Todd Terry, Tyrone Betters, Amy Acker, Kevin Downes, and Peter Facinelli.
SYNOPSIS:
Austin is a boy with both a rare brittle-bone disease and autism. But what makes Austin truly unique is his joyous, funny, life-affirming worldview that transforms and unites everyone around him.
Based on a true story, writer/director Jon Gunn’s The Unbreakable Boy features a scene where titular bone-brittle autist Austin LaRette (a sweet, hyper, and enthusiastic Jacob Laval) loses his cool to the school bully, shouting, “You’re a cliché.” That somewhat encapsulates what’s wrong here. This is also a disingenuous film, to put it politely.
While the first act takes viewers through how Austin’s parents met and his early childhood, complete with narration wholly embracing his distinct personality, it eventually settles into a road to redemption story for his father, Scott (Zachary Levi, admittedly likable in the early stages, even if his real-life self is anything but likable lately) who gradually crumbles under the pressure and hardships of raising a child with extra needs (his other child, Logan, didn’t inherit brittle bone disease from his mother), slipping further and further into alcoholism. Suddenly, the self-professed faith-based filmmaker is peppering in the importance of God on the road to recovery for a character who, until then, was indifferent to religion.
It’s one thing to make a faith-based film and something no one should have any objection to on the surface; they can be good movies like anything else if done right (last year’s Best Christmas Pageant Ever quickly comes to mind, which came from Dallas Jenkins, showrunner of The Chosen.) It shows respect to the audience by being upfront about it. With this and Jon Gunn’s last film (the Hilary Swank-led Ordinary Angels), the narrative is otherwise grounded and about something (here it is the unique mind of an autistic boy with brittle bone disease and the lifelong challenges he will face, whereas before it was the power of community) before pulling the rug out to inject its agenda. It’s manipulative and misguided, with nearly the entire second half undercutting Austin, who should theoretically be at the film’s center.
Ill-advised, traditional conservative values are reinforced throughout. Yes, some people do change, and this is a true story, but at one point (and this is teased during the medias res opening), Scott drunkenly drives home with his children and gets into a high-impact car accident. Rather than stick with the perspective of mom Teresa (Meghann Fahy), there are scenes of Scott with his parents, told to smash a porcelain cup on the ground for the eye-rolling metaphor that, much like how his son is constantly breaking bones (which is played off as an awkward running joke), he is the truly broken one.
When there is a scene with Teresa, it’s usually alongside another character urging her to give her husband another chance even though he recently almost ended her children’s lives. There are some real JD Vance “women should remain in problematic marriages for the children” vibes going on here. It’s entirely disinterested in her character beyond that she loves gaming (particularly Gears of War), skipping over golden opportunities to capitalize on her and Austin bonding over brittle bone disease (it does this once with a rocking-out dancing scene.)
Due to all of this baggage, when The Unbreakable Boy does spend time with Austin, all it has time for is turning his unique life experiences into a cliché. At one point, his class signs a petition for him to remain in the standard classroom, but one doesn’t know he is that popular or has that many friends since it’s only focused on his interactions with a bully. Perhaps this sounds cynical, but much of what’s here rings false, whether accepted or bullied.
The Unbreakable Boy brings up various situations for Austin, good and bad, but is never interested in exploring them beyond a few minutes so it can get back to focusing on Scott. To the film’s credit, the performances across the board are endearing, and, at times, it does convincingly demonstrate how much there is to do and how stressful it can be raising a child with autism and brittle bone disease. Still, that perspective issue is persistent. The boy might be unbreakable, but the movie sure is broken.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★
Robert Kojder is a member of the Chicago Film Critics Association and the Critics Choice Association. He is also the Flickering Myth Reviews Editor. Check here for new reviews, follow my Twitter or Letterboxd, or email me at MetalGearSolid719@gmail.com
