By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 4 cats
Director: Terry George
Starring: Eddie Alderson | Elle Fanning | Jennifer Connelly | Joaquin Phoenix | Mark Ruffalo | Mira Sorvino | Sean Curley
Country: united_states
Year: 2007
Running time: 102
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0831884/
Bruce says: “Were the acting not so good, my recommendation would be to not bother with this overwrought drama which
is reminiscent of IN THE BEDROOM with its vengeful father and WE DON’T LIVE HERE ANYMORE and THE ICE STORM for their bleak portrayals of suburban angst. However, the performances are so strong, the characters so well embodied, that RESERVATION ROAD ends up with more pluses than minuses.
“Ethan Lerner (Joaquin Phoenix) and his wife Grace (Jennifer Connelly) are the perfect American couple. He is a professor; she is raising two children – Emma (Elle Fanning) and Josh (Sean Curley). After a family outing they are on the way home when Emma demands they pull over at the next rest stop so she can go to the bathroom. Josh gets out of the car while his mother and sister are in the bathroom and his father is pumping gas. He goes to the edge of the road to let the fireflies, which he and his sister have captured, out of the jar.
“Meanwhile, Dwight Arno (Mark Ruffalo) and his son Lucas (Eddie Alderson) are returning home late from a Red Sox game in Boston. Dwight knows that he is in hot water for his ex-wife (Mira Sorvino) and her new husband Norris (Gary Kohn) have already voiced their dissatisfaction. Dwight is tense and driving fast. About the moment he nears the rest stop where the Lerners are stopped, an approaching car swerves in his direction and he moves quickly to avoid a collision. Josh is in his path and a dull thud is heard. Rather than stop, Dwight slows down then proceeds onward to get his son home.
“The Lerners know that the hit-and-run vehicle was a dark SUV, nothing more. The police swear they will find the driver. Days, then weeks go by. Grace wishes to get on with their lives but Ethan, by now obsessed with finding his son’s killer, decides to hire a lawyer. When he stops at a local law firm, it is Dwight who is assigned the case. This turn of events sets up a cat-and-mouse game which occupies the remainder of the film. The big mysteries are whether or not Ethan Lerner will become unhinged if he finds his son’s killer and whether Dwight Arno will crumble from the web of lies he constructs following the accident or from
the stress of being hunted down.
“Mark Ruffalo, always good at playing conflicted characters, really shines here. He is equally sincere in his struggle to connect with his son and in his ability to cover up his transgressions. Joaquin Phoenix tosses his grief and need for revenge together nicely. Jennifer Connelly is divided by the grief for her lost child and the love of her remaining child and her husband. 4 cats”