Film

Troop Zero

Name: Troop Zero
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Family
Released: 2019
Cast: Mckenna Grace, Viola Davis, Jim Gaffigan, Allison Janney, Charlie Shotwell

Coming-of-age

A 1977 Georgia comedy-drama about a space-obsessed misfit girl who forms an unlikely troop of Birdie Scouts to compete for a spot on NASA's Golden Record. It's tender and funny, with real warmth between its misfits. For anyone who loves stories about underdogs finding their people and reaching for something impossible.

TMDb rating

3.5

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like small-town underdog stories where a lonely kid's big dream gets tangled up with a ragged band of misfits, and you enjoy warmth that stays a little tart.

Skip it if you want a slick, fast-moving comedy, since this one lingers on its small-town loneliness and sentiment more than on jokes.

What it asks of you: Expect a gentle, unhurried ride of under ninety-five minutes, with its heart out in the open and its hard times handled without much irony.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Moonrise Kingdom2012

Wes Anderson's love letter to outsider friendships and adventure-seeking kids in the wilderness. Same DNA as Troop Zero: ragtag group, big dreams, grownups who actually listen.

But Anderson's aesthetic is so particular and self-conscious that it can feel more like a dollhouse than a real world. Not everyone connects with that stylization.

The Florida Project2017

Sean Baker finds beauty and dignity in the lives of poor families living at the edge. Heartbreaking and joyful at once, with a kid's-eye view of adult struggle. Pure empathy.

But The handheld camera and loose structure can feel unfocused. It's also much darker in register—childhood here is threatened, not just quirky.

Hunt for the Wilderpeople2016

Taika Waititi's New Zealand film about an old man and a foster kid on the run through the bush. Funny, genuine, and it trusts its audience to feel both things at once.

But The humor is quick and character-based; if you're looking for bigger laughs, it stays quiet. Some might find the indie-film rhythms slow.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Troop Zero

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

October Sky1999

Both are about kids in working-class American towns who dream of escape through science and space, and who change their communities by refusing to accept the world as given. Same generation, same hunger.

A West Virginia coal miner's son builds rockets in his backyard, defying his father and his town's fate. Real technical achievement mixed with genuine emotion. About how following an impossible dream can save a whole community.

But It's very much a 1999 film, and the father-son arc plays as a bit conventional now. The inspirational structure is familiar—you'll see the beats coming.

Eighth Grade2018

Bo Burnham's portrait of a shy, anxious eighth-grader trying to belong. Painfully honest about adolescence and social media, but never mean. Will make you remember what it felt like to be small.

But The cringe is real and sometimes uncomfortable. The lead actor is not conventionally charismatic, which is exactly the point—but it takes adjustment.

Captain Fantastic2016

Viggo Mortensen raises his kids off-grid in the Pacific Northwest. Funny and touching, about how misfits make family, how values clash, and why the world is worth engaging with anyway.

But The father's ideology, while sympathetic, can feel preachy. The film doesn't entirely interrogate some of his choices as much as it might.

Jojo Rabbit2019

Taika Waititi again, but this time about a lonely Hitler Youth kid and his imaginary friend who is literally Hitler. Somehow this is warm and wise about outsiders, and funny without being flippant.

But The premise is provocative, and the tonal balance between comedy and WWII is genuinely risky. Some will feel it's inappropriate even when done well.

Rushmore1998

Wes Anderson's second film, about an eccentric kid and a burned-out teacher who bond over ambition and weirdness. Gentler and more genuine than people remember. David Bowie doesn't hurt.

But It's from 1998, and sometimes it shows. The underlying love triangle can feel a bit myopic. Anderson's style is younger and slightly less assured here.

Beasts of the Southern Wild2012

A Louisiana girl in a flooded bayou community learns to survive on her own terms. Visionary, magical, and full of defiant love. A fever dream about resilience.

But The narrative is impressionistic and resists clarity. Some find it beautiful; others find it opaque. The poverty it depicts is never softened.

The Handmaiden2016

Both are about misfits and outsiders who forge genuinely deep friendships by choosing each other instead of accepting the roles society gives them. In a rigged game, they find real loyalty that survives the con.

A Korean con artist and a pickpocket pose as a handmaiden in a wealthy household. Visually lush, structurally intricate, and funny in ways that surprise you. You will not predict what happens.

But It's not in English, and it requires active reading. The plot has twists that need backward-thinking. Also: it has explicit content and themes of coercion that the film is aware of, not exploiting, but still present.

Boyhood2014

Both trust that growing up, small moments of connection, and the loyalty between misfits are enough to sustain a film. Neither needs big drama. Both believe that a troop, a family, a gathering of people who choose each other matters more than any external achievement—though that dream, the Golden Record or graduation day, matters too.

Richard Linklater filmed the same boy and his family over twelve years in real time. Not a trick—real years, real aging. By the end you've lived with these people. Slow, patient, miraculous.

But At three hours and twenty minutes, it demands real commitment. Nothing explosive happens in a traditional sense. If you need plot to drive you, the lack of it will feel like stalling.