I won't call this a movie review, because that's too much pressure. It's just li'l ol' me writing about another movie I saw this weekend.
We rented The Family Stone Saturday night. I remember my father saw this movie a few months ago and he said he didn't really like it much. I figured it was because my dad isn't a fan of silly humour. He enjoys a good laugh, but slapstick and unnecessary swearing or bathroom humour has never really done it for him.
Although this movie has its share of those things , now that I've seen it, I don't think that's why my dad disliked it. I think that, like me, he was thrown by the total out-of-the-blue sledgehammer of sadness that is thrown at the audience.
From the trailers and commercials, I expected a fish-out-of-water, meet-the-new-inlaws ha-ha kind of experience, and that is sort of the way it begins. Sarah Jessica Parker makes her way to spend Christmas with her boyfriend's (Dermot Mulroney's) family. They've never met before, and are, for all intents and purposes, completely opposite. They are a large, demonstratively affectionate, open, fairly left-wing family. She is an uptight, stiff upper lip, rules-oriented kind of gal who has tendencies to be slightly bigoted and judgemental.
Tensions mount and she ends up inviting her sister (Claire Danes) for moral support. Turns out, the family likes the sister better than the girlfriend. Blah, blah, blah.
Then, little hints begin to be dropped about a family secret, and the movie causes your emotions to take a U-turn.
I'll stop there, but consider yourself warned.
The Family Stone would never have been a movie at which I would have grabbed extra napkins with my popcorn "just in case I end up spouting waterworks". Good thing I didn't see it in the theatre.
8 comments:
Even though this is sure to cause an argument, I must say I was amused by your description of your father not liking "silly humour". I know what you mean, since I know the guy, but it just sounds too much like Principal Skinner to say "I like a good laugh at the proper time, but I don't like excessive silliness."
Anyway, I think your father is entirely capable of enjoying slapstick and silliness, but perhaps not gross-out humour. Indeed many people's tolerance for gross-out humour appears far less than Hollywood's capacity to crank it out.
No argument.
Hi LM,
I take it you DIDN'T like The Family Stone...
I do find a lot of stereotyping in plots these days. Meet the Fockers felt like a real let-down for me.
love
Well, Susan, I didn't like the feeling that I was being unnecessarily manipulated. Does that make sense? I guess there were parts of the movie I liked, but overall, not so much.
I didn't enjoy Meet the Fockers either. You're right - too much stereotyping. And I get frustrated watching movies where the solution to the conflict seems so simple to me, but the protaganist can't seem to find it.
Meet the fockers - NOT A GOOD FAMILY FILM.
You're right, Hip. I saw it with a friend at the theatre - sans enfants.
Thank you for the warning. Signed...someone who cries like a baby at sad movies!
Sounds like you and I are two peas in a pod, Jamie!
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