By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 2 cats
Director: Josh Sternfeld
Starring: Aaron Stanford | Allison Janney | Anthony LaPaglia | Mark Webber
Country: united_states
Year: 2005
Running time: 95
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0365938/combined
Diane says: “Quel disappointment! This story of a father and two sons five years after the mother’s death is a Sundance sponsored film, written and directed by Josh Sternfeld. My guess is that Sternfeld shot three times as many scenes and then edited the film on a roulette wheel. Many of the scenes of daily life (classroom, family dinners) add nothing to our understanding of what makes this family tick. (Contrast the significance of each shot in NOBODY KNOWS.) There are references to other, potentially meaningful aspects of their lives that go untapped. Frankly, it’s boring.
“The bad screenplay is offset by good acting by Anthony Paglia (executive producer here, too) and every other actor except Allison Janney.
“One quibble I have is the ‘winter’ in the title (pun on family name), the summer setting for the story, and the shots that look like early spring. Hey, I can think of another name for this movie…. 2 cats.”
Amanda W-G says: “I saw this as well. I even went to the Sneak Preview! (I do my best to get to these, but rarely get chosen or ‘randomly’ chosen).
“Anyway, I second Diane’s disappointment. Although it’s odd. In sooo many ways it should have been good. LaPaglia, Mark Webber, and Aaron Stanford were all strong. And Janney could have been–if she had been better utilized. That was my biggest confusion. Either what I thought the movie was going to be had changed, or the editing room floor really was covered in scenes
of her and LaPaglia having a second (3rd? 4th?) chance at love.
“WITHOUT A TRACE Anthony LaPaglia? Without a clue. You need some Chlotrudis editing/continuity help:-).”