Sunday, March 28, 2010

Review: Everybody's Fine

I was so excited to see an American remake of the Italian movie "Stanno Tutti Bene." Marcello Mastrianni's role as the father would be played by Robert DeNiro, and Drew Barrymore and Kate Beckinsale as the daughters. It's about a widower who goes to see his children and tries to reconnect with their lives, but they all have secrets. It's beautiful and sad, and touching. I remember in the Italian movie all the kids were named after characters in operas.

This new version was definitely sad and touching. I had tears because I felt guilty for not calling my parents. (I dutifully did so the next morning and listened to my dad ramble on about books and tv shows, and allowed my mom to scold me for not feeding my family - even though we were getting late for lessons). Also, you could look at it from the parent's point of view and wonder what do you have to do with your own kids to stay connected over the years.

This movie was just slower and depressing. Maybe it's the American landscape. Taking a bus from one Italian city to another is not a big a deal as taking bus from Chicago to Las Vegas. Acting is very good, but there should be more life to it - maybe better dialogue, maybe less quiet landscape shots?

The ending was nicer I think that the Italian one, as I recall. So, it doesn't totally leave you flat, but more hopeful for reconnections.

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