Steve Rhodes
March 17th 05, 06:46 PM
THE UPSIDE OF ANGER
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 2005 Steve Rhodes
RATING (0 TO ****): ***
In THE UPSIDE OF ANGER, Joan Allen and Kevin Costner deliver performances so
strong that you shouldn't be surprised if they get Oscar nominations. As
written and directed by Mike Binder, the movie meanders as it tries to find
its next thought. But, when it does locate it, the story sizzles. Mainly a
serious character study, the audience pleasing moments are its humorous
interludes, which are nicely done.
Like Nicolas Cage in LEAVING LAS VEGAS, Allen, as Terry Wolfmeyer, plays an
unabashed alcoholic who shoots the neighbors the shaft when they dare tell
her to slow down. They may fear a drunk behind the wheel, but Allen's
Wolfmeyer is one of those movie's version of a lush who rarely shows any
signs of significant inebriation. No matter how much she rapidly swigs
down, you won't her see falling over or slurring her words. It's too bad
that real alcoholics don't have her consistent control.
Wolfmeyer, the angry woman from the title, is bitterly unhappy because her
husband left her and her four daughters, from high school to college age,
and ran off with his young secretary. Wolfmeyer leads the typical movie
life in which money is never an issue. She resides very comfortably in a
Michigan mansion, which is set in a bucolic setting of rows and rows of
mansions. (The story's pastoral settings, with its ever changing seasons,
make the most compelling cinematic argument ever made for the joys of living
in the Detroit suburbs. You'll swear the film was financed by the Detroit
Chamber of Commerce and the Detroit Board of Tourism.)
Wolfmeyer doesn't work, nor does she need to, but her girls, played nicely
by Erika Christensen, Evan Rachel Wood, Keri Russell and Alicia Witt, are
all busy contemplating their life's work. As the youngest daughter, Wood
provides voice-over work that starts off insightful but ends up sounding
pretty pretentious.
As a washed-up, once-great baseball player named Denny Davies, Costner gives
a sweet performance. Whatever position Davies played in the majors, his
current position is that of Wolfmeyer's drinking buddy. An on-going joke
between them is that the chance of them having sex together is so unlikely
that the possibility only occurs as often as the appearance of Haley's
Comet, an event which happens every 57 years according to Wolfmeyer and even
longer according Davies's sources.
The structure of the movie is a bit of a problem since a surprising event in
the last act is all but given away needlessly in the opening, which is set
during a funeral, after which the movie flashes back three years and then
works its way forward. THE UPSIDE OF ANGER, even if it is too slow and even
if it's never as good as it should have been, does have undeniable
pleasures, the chief among them is watching Costner and Allen do some
marvelous work.
THE UPSIDE OF ANGER runs too long at 2:01. It is rated R for "language,
sexual situations, brief comic violence and some drug use" and would be
acceptable for teenagers.
The film opens in limited release in the United States on Friday, March 18,
2005. In the Silicon Valley, it will be showing at the AMC theaters, the
Century theaters and the Camera Cinemas.
Web: http://www.InternetReviews.com
Email:
************************************************** *********************
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Just send me a letter with the word "subscribe" in the subject line.
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 2005 Steve Rhodes
RATING (0 TO ****): ***
In THE UPSIDE OF ANGER, Joan Allen and Kevin Costner deliver performances so
strong that you shouldn't be surprised if they get Oscar nominations. As
written and directed by Mike Binder, the movie meanders as it tries to find
its next thought. But, when it does locate it, the story sizzles. Mainly a
serious character study, the audience pleasing moments are its humorous
interludes, which are nicely done.
Like Nicolas Cage in LEAVING LAS VEGAS, Allen, as Terry Wolfmeyer, plays an
unabashed alcoholic who shoots the neighbors the shaft when they dare tell
her to slow down. They may fear a drunk behind the wheel, but Allen's
Wolfmeyer is one of those movie's version of a lush who rarely shows any
signs of significant inebriation. No matter how much she rapidly swigs
down, you won't her see falling over or slurring her words. It's too bad
that real alcoholics don't have her consistent control.
Wolfmeyer, the angry woman from the title, is bitterly unhappy because her
husband left her and her four daughters, from high school to college age,
and ran off with his young secretary. Wolfmeyer leads the typical movie
life in which money is never an issue. She resides very comfortably in a
Michigan mansion, which is set in a bucolic setting of rows and rows of
mansions. (The story's pastoral settings, with its ever changing seasons,
make the most compelling cinematic argument ever made for the joys of living
in the Detroit suburbs. You'll swear the film was financed by the Detroit
Chamber of Commerce and the Detroit Board of Tourism.)
Wolfmeyer doesn't work, nor does she need to, but her girls, played nicely
by Erika Christensen, Evan Rachel Wood, Keri Russell and Alicia Witt, are
all busy contemplating their life's work. As the youngest daughter, Wood
provides voice-over work that starts off insightful but ends up sounding
pretty pretentious.
As a washed-up, once-great baseball player named Denny Davies, Costner gives
a sweet performance. Whatever position Davies played in the majors, his
current position is that of Wolfmeyer's drinking buddy. An on-going joke
between them is that the chance of them having sex together is so unlikely
that the possibility only occurs as often as the appearance of Haley's
Comet, an event which happens every 57 years according to Wolfmeyer and even
longer according Davies's sources.
The structure of the movie is a bit of a problem since a surprising event in
the last act is all but given away needlessly in the opening, which is set
during a funeral, after which the movie flashes back three years and then
works its way forward. THE UPSIDE OF ANGER, even if it is too slow and even
if it's never as good as it should have been, does have undeniable
pleasures, the chief among them is watching Costner and Allen do some
marvelous work.
THE UPSIDE OF ANGER runs too long at 2:01. It is rated R for "language,
sexual situations, brief comic violence and some drug use" and would be
acceptable for teenagers.
The film opens in limited release in the United States on Friday, March 18,
2005. In the Silicon Valley, it will be showing at the AMC theaters, the
Century theaters and the Camera Cinemas.
Web: http://www.InternetReviews.com
Email:
************************************************** *********************
Want free reviews and weekly movie and video recommendations via Email?
Just send me a letter with the word "subscribe" in the subject line.