Little Miss Sunshine

Film Analysis Paper

A system is a set of interrelated parts. Systems theory assumes that a system must be understood as a whole, rather than in component parts. It is a way of looking at the world where all the objects are interrelated with one another. Many family systems are addressed in the movie Little Miss Sunshine.

Wholeness is a system in which the individual parts of the system can not be isolated from one another in order to comprehend the system as a whole. An example would be if a father is an alcoholic, it becomes the family’s problem rather then just the father’s. In Little Miss Sunshine, the father has a winning attitude about everything in his life. His overbearing attitude about winning is displayed throughout everything in his life. It eventually rubs off on his entire family, especially his daughter Olive who is scared of becoming a loser because her father hates losers.

Another system used in the making of Little Miss Sunshine is Interdependence, where a change in one part of the system creates change in the other parts of the systems. For example, the dad in the movie lost out on a book deal promoting his nine steps to winning therefore affecting the income of the entire family. Also, the mother and father fight explicitly throughout the majority of the film which affects their fifteen year old son Dwain and other members of the family. One of the better �chain reactions’ of the film however would be the grandfather’s used of heroine. He became addicted to snorting it which got him kicked out of his nursing home, Sunset Manor. The move from the nursing home to his son’s house disrupted the routine of the whole family. His continuous use of the drug killed him right before Olive’s Little Miss Sunshine pageant deeply affecting the entire family.

Boundaries define what is in a system and what is not. Systems can be more “open” and some can be more “closed”. The son, Dwain, takes a vow of silence until he has reached his goal of becoming a fighter pilot in the military. This act of silence displays a more obvious closed boundary as he is almost completely unapproachable. However, Frank the uncle who tries to commit suicide, moves in and somewhat starts to break down the boundary due to his own openness. Frank is completely honest with seven year old Olivia about being gay and trying to kill his self. Often it takes a more open boundary to be able to connect with a more closed boundary.

Equifinality is a system that explains how people reach goals differently. Throughout the movie, happiness seems to be a common goal trying to be reached by the characters. It is completely apparent in the opening credits of the movie. It shows the father doing a lecture on how there are two kinds of people in the world-winners and losers. Olive is also shown watching the crowning of a Miss America pageant over and over, practicing the “winning” face. It shows Dwain working out excessively in his bedroom. Also, the grandfather is shown in his own bedroom snorting heroine. The only one who doesn’t seem to be concentrating on their own happiness is the mom who seems to be the glue that holds the family together.

Feedback produces change in a system. Negative feedback maintains a system causing