The Kids Are All Right

The Kids Are All Right

A comedy directed by Lisa Choladenko attempts to connect the dots of family life within a not-so traditional household.  In order to pull off this film, Choladenko had to capitalize on the talents of her all-star cast:  Annette Bening, Julianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo, Josh Hutcherson, and Mia Wasikowska.  Although nominated for several Academy Awards (including best picture), the film was woefully unable to eke out a victory in any category.

As the movie begins, the characters and domestic unit is quickly identified as your not-so-typical family.  The two children, Joni (Wasikowska) and Laser (Hutcherson), are being raised by a lesbian couple in what seems to be an upscale middle class neighborhood.  At first blush, it appears that the two adolescents are well adjusted and dealing with typical teenage issues.  That is until Joni turns eighteen and her brother, Laser, asks her to locate their father, who was an anonymous sperm donor. 

The two youths have little difficulty finding their biological father, Paul (Ruffalo), as he is all too willing to meet with them and become part of their lives.  The problems arise when the two mothers, Nic (Bening) and Jules (Moore), find out that the kids have contacted and met Paul without their knowledge or consent.  Nic, the controlling parent, is upset and voices her displeasure with the situation.  While Jules, the free spirit, suggests that meeting Paul would have been a perfectly natural curiosity for the two youngsters.  However, both moms do initially seem shocked as the kids indicate that they would like to continue to develop a relationship with Paul.

As Paul’s relationship with the family grows, Nic becomes more and more unable to handle his interloper status.  She sees him as a threat to her family unit and rightfully so.  As Paul begins to infiltrate the family, Nic’s world becomes less stable and the not-so-typical family struggles to remain intact.

This film was difficult for me to review.  The movie had the potential to be great and then the director lost focus with all of the sexual overtones and intermittent character development.  This production could have been taken in so many wonderful directions; instead we are left with an ending that was really not very fulfilling.  I give The Kids Are All Right three out of five stars.  This is a classic example of the director letting the cast down, as I felt the acting was superb.  The actors single handedly carried this film and had the director and writers gotten the ending or even the middle right, perhaps they would have garnered some Academy hardware.  If you haven't had the chance to watch this film, I wouldn't put it on your must see list.

That’s How Matt Sees It!