Best Month Ever! Review: Far From The Best

The main antagonist of Best Month Ever! seems to be the horrors of rural America and the American south, as violence and abuse are around every corner. Gun violence is particularly common in this story but is handled far too casually. For example, Mitch witnesses a murder up close early on and rather than show any signs of trauma, Mitch picks up and fires several guns with no hesitation. However, the most jarring and violent sequence comes when Mitch and Louise find themselves in the home of a local KKK leader. Louise kills the Klansman, then pretends to be him and, with Mitch in the car, drives to that night’s cross burning and attempted lynching so she kills the other two members – and none of this has any impact on Mitch and is never mentioned again.
There are also a number of harmful stereotypes depicted throughout the journey: one example features two Native Americans and some peyote plants. After their car breaks down in the desert, Mitch gets bitten by a rattlesnake but is found and saved by two Native American men – and yes, they speak with the stereotypical monotone dialect made famous by dated western movies. The big issue with Mitch’s rescue is that, in order to save him, the two men rush everyone into a hut and give Louise peyote for some reason. She goes on a  meaningless vision quest, wakes up to a cured Mitch, and the two then leave without ever mentioning it again.

Best Month Ever! has its positive moments too, as the core of the story is that of a single mother doing her best to cherish her final days with her son, while making sure he will be loved and looked after when she passes. Unfortunately, this core sentiment is tainted by its various problematic moments and its inadvertent enforcement of harmful stereotypes. Best Month Ever! tries to tell a complex and loving story but the inherent cultural misunderstandings that come from race and nationality make those efforts fall flat and mar what is otherwise a serviceable narrative about love and family.
Best Month Ever! is available now on PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch with a PlayStation release sometime in the near future. Screen Rant was provided with a Nintendo Switch download for the purpose of this review.

Our Rating:
3 out of 5 (Good)

#Month #Review