Sundance review: Disney's 'Timmy Failure' is a lot deeper than most kids' movies

‘Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made’

★★★

Playing in the Kids section of the 2020 Sundance Film Festival. Streaming on Disney+, starting Feb. 7. Running time: 100 minutes.

Screens again: Sunday, Jan. 26, 12:30 p.m., Redstone 1 (Park City); Wednesday, Jan. 29, 5:30 p.m., Prospector (Park City); Saturday, Feb. 1, 12:30 p.m., Redstone 1 (Park City).

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Under the wacky, Disney-friendly exterior of “Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made” lies a melancholy heart and a story with a lot on its mind.

Timmy, played by 11-year-old Winslow Fegley (brother of “Wonderstruck” and “Pete’s Dragon” star Oakes Begley), stands out as an odd kid in his fifth-grade class in the suburbs of Portland, Ore. The scarf is one clue. So is his obsession with running his own detective agency, Total Failure Inc. — named after himself and his partner, Total, a 1,500-pound polar bear.

It’s not an easy partnership, as Timmy regularly remarks on how unprofessional Total is — like when he devours the contents of a seafood delivery truck instead of being a lookout on a case. (One of the subtle joys here is the way director Tom McCarthy never underlines the fact that Timmy is the only person who acknowledges Total’s existence.)

Detective work keeps Timmy from focusing on the more traditional aspects of fifth grade, like paying attention to his exasperated teacher, Mr. Crocus (played by national treasure Wallace Shawn). Timmy’s classroom behavior means another parent-teacher conference for Timmy’s mom (Ophelia Lovibond), but this time Timmy ends up meeting the school counselor (Craig Robinson), who is sage enough to take Timmy’s detective ambitions seriously.

McCarthy (directing his first movie since the Best Picture Oscar winner “Spotlight”) and co-writer Stephan Pastis, adapting Pastis’ children’s book series, plant some serious undertones under the wacky comedy. It becomes quickly apparent that Timmy’s detective exploits — and his distrust of classmate Corrina Corrina (Ai-Chin Carrier), aka The Nameless One — are a hedge against the scariest mystery of all: Growing up.

McCarthy plays these themes with the right balance of silliness and seriousness, while allowing Timmy’s eccentricity to mirror that of his home town. If you ever wondered what an episode of “Portlandia” would be like as a Disney movie, look no further.