Why Boyhood is truly one of the greatest films for a boy born in the early/mid 90s

You know, everyone says seize the moment? I don't know, I'm kind
of thinking it's the other way around. You know, like, the moment
seizes us.

Boyhood is a film that was shot over a period of 39 days in total, but one that spanned over a period of 12 years, making it incredibly unique. Although Richard Linklater's Boyhood was released in British cinemas a year ago in 2014, it has recently been spouted out again and again on Sky movies, which is pretty much what happens once Sky premieres a new film. However, as I (like many others do) flicked through certain scenes of Boyhood, I realised the little hidden gems in the background and certain scenes that I missed when I watched it in the cinema.

When lead character Mason (Ellar Coltrane) has one of his first scenes, you can spot a distinctive Dragon Ball Z poster on his wall. Now to some people this may seem a futile spot, but I'm now 24 years old and I can relate to this because Dragon Ball Z around the time when this scene is set (maybe late 1999 or 2000) was most 6-14 year old's favourite program! This I feel is a really good Easter egg and one that was brilliantly/subtly added.

It isn't just Easter eggs that I found really interesting about Boyhood. Although the film title seems to imply it will centre around Mason, it also delves into the lives of his mother played by Patricia Arquette. Her story in the film is about her struggle to raise Mason and his sister whilst repeatedly wrestling with failed relationships, one in particular is one of which she is a recipient of physical and mental abuse by an alcoholic husband and step father to Mason. 

Again I can relate to this because my parents have been divorced since before I can remember. So when I was young, my parents being separated and myself being introduced to my dad's new girlfriends was the norm. Although my parents never received any physical abuse, one in-particular girlfriend-turned-wife was in fact a manipulative and stereotypical evil Disney step mother, but that's a story for my autobiography when I become a famous film reviewer... haha!

 Finally another great edition was the build up to the 2008 Presidential Election. Although I live in the UK, I will always remember seeing how positive the majority of America was feeling about the more increasing possibility that the President 2008 onward would be one of black ethnicity. There is a scene where Mason is about 12 years old and he is helping his dad (Ethan Hawke) put up Obama signs in people's gardens. Additionally President Barack Obama exclusively told People Magazine that Boyhood was his favourite film of 2014. 

Another political nod by Director Richard Linklater is early on in the film when the timeline must be around 2003, Mason's father takes him and his sister bowling and tells them about the unjust Iraq war and how it had nothing to do with 9/11. This is important because it shows after all the discourse that President Bush and the US media fed to the American public and the Western world about terrorism and fear, some people still stood strong and challenged this rhetoric.

Richard Linklater putting up pro-Obama
 sign for a scene in Boyhood.

What's truly great about Boyhood is that you are not watching the characters, you are watching with the characters, at least that's how I felt. Their surroundings in a particular scene make you relate and remember that time in your own life and that's where Director Linklater has triumphed whether it was deliberate or not.

In short, it is a real human film that will go down as a personal great and one I highly recommend to watch if you've not already done so.