WOW, this was really good. A tad boring in spots and nothing much really happens but it all adds up to a fulfilling experience at the movies. I didn't like "In the Bedroom" at all and from the ads/reviews for this one I figured it might be more of the same, and in some ways it is and in many ways its a lot more.
All of the characters are unfulfilled. Seems to be a suburban trend, like mini-vans. Winslet is front and center as an outcast within her own marriage, as a Mother and as a 'successful' person. The other mothers at the playground either pity or blame her for herself. She can't even remember to pack snacks for the kid when they go to the playground. What a pity. Truth is she really is not much of a Mother and her husband is worse. Brad (Wilson) seems to have it all together and he is a good stay-at-home Dad but his wife Kathy (Connelly) is intent on cutting off his masculinity at every turn (though I don't think she even knew she was doing it), as she's the breadwinner and seems to call all the shots within the home.
In the background, beneath all this 'bliss' lies Ronnie, who recently was let out of prison for indecency charges. Everyone is outraged that he has to live in their neighborhood. On the day he shows up at the public swimming pool, 'just to cool off', a stampede of caregivers remove their kids from the pool as soon as they possibly can. Meanwhile he IS supposed to have stayed away from where children gather. Ronnie's mom, (he calls her Mommie), is extraordinarily understanding and forgiving, and not in a psycho way either. The scene where she is talking to him about people and how we go on despite the knowledge that at any moment, anything precious in our lives can be taken from us, is the most sensitive, heartfelt scene in the movie. She says 'we are all miracles' and I thought of that line a lot when I left the movie. Ronnie's Mom is the most well-balanced person in the entire movie. I'm glad the screenwriter did not choose to base his problems on her and her upbringing. She really does love her son so much that it was touching to me to see their relationship.
We also have Larry, who has made it his business to tell the neighbors that they have a sexual predator in their midst, as if they didn't know. Meanwhile, he's no saint himself. He has things to atone for in his past, too. All the characters do. They are all guilty of something. They all have things they are better off hiding from themselves.
All the actors are fantastic. Winslet makes every movie she's in better than it would normally be. Wilson is the perfect embodiment of a Ken doll but he's a screw-up, too, especially at the end. Connelly has her moments but she does not get a ton of screen time. Jackie is really great and I can easily see him getting a nomination for his portrayal of Ronnie. A friend of mine used to say that if you can nail your 'big' scenes, you have a pretty good chance, and the scene where he lets it all go, lets all his frustration and sadness loose, is very well done.
I can recommend this movie to anyone with patience. Todd seems to fashion himself a director of small and intimate dramas and he's good at that based on this movie. At least he is making worthwhile movies that give you something to chew on when you leave the cinema.
All of the characters are unfulfilled. Seems to be a suburban trend, like mini-vans. Winslet is front and center as an outcast within her own marriage, as a Mother and as a 'successful' person. The other mothers at the playground either pity or blame her for herself. She can't even remember to pack snacks for the kid when they go to the playground. What a pity. Truth is she really is not much of a Mother and her husband is worse. Brad (Wilson) seems to have it all together and he is a good stay-at-home Dad but his wife Kathy (Connelly) is intent on cutting off his masculinity at every turn (though I don't think she even knew she was doing it), as she's the breadwinner and seems to call all the shots within the home.
In the background, beneath all this 'bliss' lies Ronnie, who recently was let out of prison for indecency charges. Everyone is outraged that he has to live in their neighborhood. On the day he shows up at the public swimming pool, 'just to cool off', a stampede of caregivers remove their kids from the pool as soon as they possibly can. Meanwhile he IS supposed to have stayed away from where children gather. Ronnie's mom, (he calls her Mommie), is extraordinarily understanding and forgiving, and not in a psycho way either. The scene where she is talking to him about people and how we go on despite the knowledge that at any moment, anything precious in our lives can be taken from us, is the most sensitive, heartfelt scene in the movie. She says 'we are all miracles' and I thought of that line a lot when I left the movie. Ronnie's Mom is the most well-balanced person in the entire movie. I'm glad the screenwriter did not choose to base his problems on her and her upbringing. She really does love her son so much that it was touching to me to see their relationship.
We also have Larry, who has made it his business to tell the neighbors that they have a sexual predator in their midst, as if they didn't know. Meanwhile, he's no saint himself. He has things to atone for in his past, too. All the characters do. They are all guilty of something. They all have things they are better off hiding from themselves.
All the actors are fantastic. Winslet makes every movie she's in better than it would normally be. Wilson is the perfect embodiment of a Ken doll but he's a screw-up, too, especially at the end. Connelly has her moments but she does not get a ton of screen time. Jackie is really great and I can easily see him getting a nomination for his portrayal of Ronnie. A friend of mine used to say that if you can nail your 'big' scenes, you have a pretty good chance, and the scene where he lets it all go, lets all his frustration and sadness loose, is very well done.
I can recommend this movie to anyone with patience. Todd seems to fashion himself a director of small and intimate dramas and he's good at that based on this movie. At least he is making worthwhile movies that give you something to chew on when you leave the cinema.