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FFT Reports From FESTROIA. Each year, FESTROIA shines its spotlight on a different film producing country. This year, it is the turn of the Czech Republic

The Film Society of Lincoln Center and Laura Blum, in collaboration with the Czech Film Center and Czech Center New York, will present a series to mark the 20th anniversary of Czech freedom, "The Ironic Curtain: Czech Cinema since the Velvet Revolution"

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Film Review: The Kids Are All Right PDF Print E-mail
Reviews - Film Reviews
Written by Rob Goald | Friday, 23 July 2010 19:01   

* * * 1/2

Director Lisa Cholodenko borrows the title for her latest film from a classic song by The Who and makes a strong statement about love and life in the 21st Century. The story revolves around a lesbian couple named Nic and Jules(Annette Bening & Julianne Moore) and their teenage children Joni and Laser(Mia Wasikowska & Josh Hutcherson)seeking out their biological father-Paul, played pitch perfect by Mark Ruffalo.

Image from THE KID ARE ALL RIGHT

This third feature from Cholodenko displays in abundance her honesty and ability to obtain truthful performances from her actors. By far the least likable character, uptight doctor Nic (Bening) appears engagingly stern from the point when she learns that 18-year-old Joni (Mia Wasikowska) and 15-year-old Laser (Josh Hutcherson) have secretly sought out and met their biological father, Paul (Ruffalo). Moore's fully realized Jules is at once sharp and flaky, an underachiever whose landscaping biz is floundering until Paul, an organic crop farmer and restaurateur who starts coming to family dinners, offers her work on his unkempt backyard. Nic's eventual realization that Jules and Paul have been tending more than his bushes is indelibly captured in an emotional catharsis that is indelibly etched into our minds.

The soundtrack is replete with some excellent pop selections and the technical credits from cinematography to production design are first-rate.

It’s early in the game to say for sure, but this Sundance premiere has Oscar contender written all over it.

Last Updated on Friday, 23 July 2010 19:14
 

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