Kajillionaire is a lovely but odd – very odd – little comedy drama about a family of grifters who live not exactly off-the-grid but more off of social norms. They operate out of LA but not within anything approaching normalcy. The family is played by Richard Jenkins, Debra Winger, and Evan Rachel Wood as their adult but socially stunted daughter.

In fact, they are all stunted and stilted in the same way this movie is stilted and just five degrees off from normal. This is a comedy of non-existent manners with characters who are maladjusted and possibly (probably) just a little bit crazy. They spend their days finding low-rent ways to grift the system, never too much to avoid the System coming down on them.

It took me a good solid half hour to get into this movie’s weird vibe. I was turned off by these characters and the filmmaking that wasn’t letting me into them as people. But when the film brings in a sunny co-conspirator played by Gina Rodriguez, I started to see what the filmmakers were doing. Juxtaposing her bright humanity against their maladjusted weirdness allows me to see them all as people. Deeply damaged people… and people who needed to learn how to love and be loved.

This is a kind of special film. I’m not sure its for everyone… pretty sure many people won’t give it a fair shake. But I think if you like your dramas and comedies just a little off-kilter and are willing to give it a shot, you’ll find a neat, weirdly heartfelt film.

Score: 82