The Florida Project (2017)

Willem Defoe is nominated in this movie for Best Supporting Actor, and in truth, he is at the center of the movie, there is no real story here.  It is more about the decaying of our country, the new projects that exist and the people who live in them.
It’s hard to describe this movie in a way that conveys its greatness without making it sound maudlin and Defoe's role as sentimental. There is some of that, but it is more than the sum of its parts.  It is one of those films that defies its plot description through its execution. It is a film of small notes that combine to form something major, the kind of movie that sneaks up on you and sticks with you.
DeFoe is the on site manager of a cheap hotel on an Orlando strip that includes gun shops, tourist trinket discount shops, and the people who live amidst the squalor.  The motels are modern projects but without kitchens.  Mooey is a kid who is essentially without supervision much of the day.  Her mother, Halley, alternates between ignoring her and inappropriately treating her like a friend, complete with the bad language and the the poor social skills that landed her where she is.  As the movie meanders to an end, Halley spirals downward, alienating ever more people and selling herself without managing to make enough to pay the rent.  It is not the window you want to look through into life in America, but it is one that is increasingly common.