Review: Just because something is obviously
Oscar®-bait doesn't mean it has to suck. Sigourney Weaver hasn't
been nominated for one since she got two noms way back in 1989,
to be perfectly frank, she could use one. So, since playing
disabled people is generally considered a call for help by
respected actors who want kudos, this film is on the very early
lists.
It may actually deserve to be.
We don't really know who Vivienne Freeman (Emily Hampshire) is
when we first see her on the screen. We know she's a neo-hippie,
and she's looking for someone special, and she settles on Alex
Hughes (Alan Rickman), who's looking depressed although we learn
soon enough is a manslaughterer just out of prison. He doesn't
like her, but the force of Viv's personality forces him to
relent, and soon enough they're on the road headed west, where
he's to drop her off at her home town.
That's when the unexpected truck plows into the car, and the
person who we think is going to be the main character gets
killed.
I include this spoiler here because we're only about fifteen
minutes into the film and the rest is about what happens later.
Viv's mom Linda(Weaver) is disabled. She's a highly-verbal
autistic person who can take care of herself to some extent, but
still acts like she's about five. [That's the Oscar®-bait part.
Apparently, the voters are supposed to love that sort of thing.]
Alex comes over to pay a condolence visit and winds up spending
the better part of the week there. There's a funeral to organize
and Linda's parents are off somewhere having fun.
So we have two great actors doing what they do best, and having
a wonderful time not grieving. There's even a chance for romance
between Alex and Linda's next door neighbor Maggie(Carrie-Anne
Moss), who's a bit of a slut and is a glutton for grownup
conversation. That balances off the bizarre goings on at
Linda's.
The best thing about this is the fact that script is so smart
and fresh, scribe Angela Pell has crafted a really funny and
touching script. It should be seen.
Eric Lurio
Richard E. Schiff
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