tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9149411832127844385.post1931704520781074456..comments2024-03-22T14:34:39.101-04:00Comments on MONDO 70: A Wild World of Cinema: THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT (2010)Samuel Wilsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00934870299522899944noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9149411832127844385.post-3845595951878748062011-02-18T18:47:00.937-05:002011-02-18T18:47:00.937-05:00Thanks for writing, everyone. The more I think of ...Thanks for writing, everyone. The more I think of Moore's omission, the more I'm inclined to blame it on familiarity. Bening doesn't act often enough to be as familiar. Moore is more or less always recognizable as Moore, while Bening has the liberty of vanishing into a good role whenever she gets one. <br /><br />KC, I thought Bening brought force to her role, but the role itself seems too simplistically conceived for her performance to have the same vitality Moore's has.<br /><br />John, it's certainly a superior Hollywood film and I agree on the absence of exaggeration. Bening's performance isn't exaggerated, but the script is somewhat stacked against her, though ultimately forgiving.<br /><br />YTSL, I'm in self-questioning agreement on the film's lack of "moment." I lean toward more ambitious films like Carlos, Social Network and even King's Speech, but I'll admit that I can't objectively relegate Kids to a lower rung because it's less historic. For some viewers Kids' content is the stuff that really counts in movies.<br /><br />Erich, I definitely see your point about the "conservative" family-values aspect of the film; it's probably why the ending feels predetermined for me. I think Cholodenko strives to make points about gender, sexuality and character, as when both Paul and Laser are called "fags" basically for being decent people. She allows for transgression, but family ultimately trumps it.<br /><br />Sam, Kids would probably make it in at the bottom of my 2010 top ten right now, but I've still seen relatively few films from last year. I haven't seen High Art, either, but from what you and Erich say about it I probably ought to.Samuel Wilsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00934870299522899944noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9149411832127844385.post-4068580168054366072011-02-18T13:37:38.190-05:002011-02-18T13:37:38.190-05:00The film was even more revered by the New York Fil...The film was even more revered by the New York Film Crtics Circle, who showered three major awards on the film: Anette Bening, Mark Ruffalo and the Stuart Blomberg and Lisa Cholodenko's screenplay. This is an exceptional drama with (as you note) superlative performances all around, and it's curious that Moore was pretty much taken for granted by the critics and the Academy. Cholodenko's HIGH ART was one of the two or three greatest gay-lesbian themed films ever made, and in that film she also inspired some great work by the actors. THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT barely missed my own ten-best list, but I would have no problem at all if it got into the top five nominated films. I quite agree with you on the dinner party scene! Outstanding review as always.Sam Julianonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9149411832127844385.post-35135437109246950262011-02-17T11:51:08.281-05:002011-02-17T11:51:08.281-05:00I find Cholodenko's treatment of men in her fi...I find Cholodenko's treatment of men in her films fascinating and disturbing, though I worry feminists will take what I say the wrong way. I always hate when a bland straight guy breaks up a lesbian couple in the movies, like Kissing Jessica Stein, but a lot about KIDS is, as I discussed in a recent <a href="http://www.brightlightsfilm.com/71/71ruffalo_kuersten.php" rel="nofollow"> Bright Lights article</a>, a bit "camp-conservative"Erich Kuerstenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02850572368098319317noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9149411832127844385.post-67844067286191650022011-02-17T09:43:57.815-05:002011-02-17T09:43:57.815-05:00I agree with a lot of your thoughts regarding THE ...I agree with a lot of your thoughts regarding THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT -- notably with regards to Julianne Moore's Oscar nomination omission (and perhaps at the expense of Annette Bening). Also, it's not just the subject that doesn't seem dramatic or momentous enough for me but, rather, the film itself as well.<br /><br />I think it didn't help my viewing of the film that I saw it a few days after learning of it having won a Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical) and in the wake of viewing THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNET'S NEST which really impressed (as did THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO -- though THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE less so).YTSLhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09930487923185001591noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9149411832127844385.post-43145670238059122482011-02-17T09:00:05.845-05:002011-02-17T09:00:05.845-05:00Agree with you Samuel that this film would not hav...Agree with you Samuel that this film would not have made a five film Best Picture category. Still the performances by Bening and Moore are highlights plus a script that is intelligent, extremely funny without exaggerating its characters to the extreme. Bening’s character is insecure about aging while Moore is a bit of flak. They both come across as real people anyone of us could know.Johnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01808503055317962289noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9149411832127844385.post-91407537474852637192011-02-17T02:35:43.667-05:002011-02-17T02:35:43.667-05:00I was also more intrigued by Moore in this movie. ...I was also more intrigued by Moore in this movie. Her performance made me think of real people I knew, while Bening reminded me of other movie characters I'd seen. Bening didn't have the force or energy that Moore had.KChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17587905976811500791noreply@blogger.com