Warning: Spoilers
Recently, I watched a movie called The Florida Project, which is becoming more popular on social media. Originally released in 2017, it follows a troublesome young Moonee getting into mischief with her friends and the troubles of her defiant single mother, Halley, while living in a motel near Disneyland. It depicts both the carefree nature of childhood along with the reality of the real world. The movie is seen through a specific filter that appears more vibrant and bright, bringing the impression of looking through a childlike lens, where the world seems purer and happier. However, the movie’s ending confuses many when Moonee gets taken by CPS, but before she does, she runs away with her friend, Jancey, where they run into Disneyland, with no one stopping them.
This movie brought many questions forth from viewers, one of the main ones being “Was Halley a good mother?” From the perspective of Moonee, yes, to her it seemed she tried her best and was a good mother. However, if one takes a step back and truly assesses her methods of motherhood, one can argue that Halley was not as good a mother as she could have been. She was a bad influence on Moonee, allowing, if not encouraging her poor behavior with her own. She also potentially put Moonee in danger multiple times when she was working when one of the men who visited walked in on Moonee while in the bathtub. The argument of whether or not these actions were justified can be brought to light because of the circumstances Halley and Moonee were in. Rent was due and there was no source of income, Halley had no choice, but she could’ve gone about it in a better way. She shouldn’t have kept Moonee in the same motel room as she was working, putting her at risk with these random strangers visiting. While there is no doubt in mind that Halley deeply loved and cared for Moonee, she was not a good mother, because there is a big difference between being loved and being taken good care of.
Another major question that arose from the movie was “Who called CPS on Halley?” It was never revealed who exactly called CPS, but there were several suspects, such as Halley’s ex-best friend, Ashley. When they got into a fight, which eventually became physical, it caused some viewers to question whether or not Ashley called CPS on Halley after the altercation. However, it seems quite unlikely that she did because Ashley herself would not even want CPS near her either being that she was also in a precarious situation. Another person viewers suspect is Bobby, the owner of the motel. This is because, being the owner, he witnessed first-hand the circumstances that Moonee had to live under when he saw several men going in and out of the room all the while Moonee was still in the room as well. This caused watchers to wonder whether or not he was concerned for Moonee’s safety and ended up calling CPS.
A final question viewers wonder about is “What was that ending?” The ending confused many, being that it made no sense because no one could just run into Disneyland and get away with it, much less two little girls with no parental supervision. Many claim that this ending is due to Moonee dying after running away, and getting hit on the highway, and this is her idea of heaven: going to Disneyland with her best friend. However, others just believe that it was the true ending, that Jancey really just led Moonee into Disneyland without any tickets, allowing them to experience the childlike wonder other kids get to feel. Overall, it was an excellent movie that exhibited the childlike curiosity and carelessness all the while shedding light on real-life issues and struggles.
