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DVD Pieces of April
The plot of Pieces of April, a sweet independent film, couldn't be simpler: As a raffish young woman named April (chipmunk-cute Katie Holmes, Wonder Boys, Dawson's Creek) struggles to cook Thanksgiving dinner in her dingy, cramped New York apartment, her estranged family slowly drives toward the city, stopping now and then to question why they're going to a meal they expect to be not only bad to eat, but awkward and unhappy. The writing, acting, and directing of Pieces of April ranges from straightforward to clumsy--and yet the movie builds to a surprisingly potent emotional conclusion. Much of the credit goes to wily Patricia Clarkson (High Art, The Station Agent), who plays April's cancer-ridden mother with a compelling mixture of sadness, rebellion, and wistful hope. Also featuring Oliver Platt (Funny Bones), Sean Hayes (Billy's Hollywood Screen Kiss), and Derek Luke (Antwone Fisher). --Bret Fetzer
thank god for POA! Katie Holmes is a great actress, but her roles up until this point, have proved otherwise. she's the best thing about all her films, but she never has to do much. in this film, she convincingly portrays a daughter estranged by her family more by their doing than hers. She didnt have to overact in this film to stand out, she stood her ground because she had a solid script to work with. this movie was very well rounded because it has perfect mix of comedy and drama. You really see how hard she's trying, so when things dont go as planned, you really feel for April. I really enjoyed everyone's performances in this film: from the father caught in the middle of everything, to the perfect child Beth, put on a pedastool not on her own, but by her mother. Jimmy the brother, that you're not really sure what to think of. he's just kind of there to make eveyrone's life easier. does what is needed. (including rolling his mothers joint. classic scene) Grandma Dottie suffers from alzeihemiers, but movie alzhemiers. you know the one. the kind that allows her to deliver the perfect one liners at the best time, therefore only allowing her to know what is going on, when necessary.
it is a slow film, and you must be willing to emotionally invest a lot, to enjoy it. but all the quirky people in this film make it utterly charming!
My only complaint is Katie's lack of attention. she far outshined Patty in this film, and i feel she deserves more credit than she got!
Brings a tear to your eye
This movie was so touching. It's crazy because this reminds me so much of my family it's almost depressing. So April (Played by the ever wonderful Katie Holmes in what I believe to be her best performance ever) is cooking thanksgiving dinner for her estranged family including her dying mother Joy (Clarkson in an amazing role deserving of her oscar nod), her overwhelmed and loving father Jim (Platt in an equaly impressive role, for him that is) and her two siblings, Timmy and the annoying, want-to-slap-her-in-the-face-and-call-her-a-b!+@# sister Beth. Oh yeah, and her grandmother. So the family travels across the state to NY to see April, while she struggles to bake a turkey. Her boyfriend Bobby (Luke) tries to make everything alright and is very optimistic about the outcome of the day. You'd think that a film about baking a turkey would be boring, but it's soooooo much more than that. This film is about acceptance and family and most importantly love...as April puts it perfectly, it's realizing that you can't do it alone. This is a very underrated film with a great cast that gives the best performaces of their carrers here and I feel need a little more recognition for that. Katie Holmes is slated as the cute one from Dawson's Creek, but given a few more roles like this one and she may see an oscar in her future...I would recomend this movie to anyone, it's that good...giving you a look at what real life is like, what your actions have on your family and how anyone at anytime can change...it's all about making memories, new memories to counteract the bad ones.
some wonderful actors in this low budget film
Katie Holmes, in particular, as well as Derek Luke, Oliver
Platt, etc. I liked the writing a lot, direction--as well as the camera work. Hard to believe it was shot with a 3 chip Sony digital camera!
Ordinarily this would not have been my type of flick, etc., but wanted to see what they were able to accomplish with the Sony PD 150... Like I said: fine work--and you can't help but like and appreciate a talented actress like Ms. Holmes (who pretty much carries most of the film).
A strong ensemble and director Tom McCarthy's sweetly low-key observations make Sundance fave The Station Agent a treat. The film revolves around a reserved, somber dwarf (Peter Dinklage, immortalized by his brilliant ticked-off tirade in Living in Oblivion), a train enthusiast who inherits a small depot in rural New Jersey. He makes friends, somewhat reluctantly, with a group of eccentric locals: the guy at the coffee stand (buoyant Bobby Cannavale), an artist (Patricia Clarkson, impeccable as usual), a librarian (Michelle Williams). A few of the plot strands feel forced, but whenever the actors are simply playing off each other with McCarthy's nicely understated dialogue--which is most of the time--it ambles along winningly. You'll also learn more than you ever thought... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Peter Dinklage - Bobby Cannavale - Patricia Clarkson Director(s): Thomas McCarthy DVD Release Date: Released the 15 June 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
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In America stars the incandescent Samantha Morton and Paddy Considine as two young Irish parents who have lost their only son. Trying to run away from their grief, they move (illegally) to a junkie-infested apartment building in New York City with their two daughters, Christy (Sarah Bolger) and Ariel (Emma Bolger). Though they struggle with meager jobs and suffocatingly hot weather, a friendship with an artist in an apartment below them (Djimon Hounsou, Gladiator) becomes a catalyst that allows them to rebuild their family. In America is splendidly acted throughout--of particular note are the two girls, real-life sisters whose on-screen charisma is clearly a family trait. But it's Morton who anchors the movie; her every emotion seems to glow from her skin. The... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Paddy Considine - Samantha Morton - Djimon Hounsou Director(s): Jim Sheridan DVD Release Date: Released the 11 May 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
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It sounds like Love Story, but with an intriguing twist. 23-year-old wife and mom Sarah Polley has spent her entire life sacrificing for others and living on the economic fringe; when she discovers she has only a few months to live, she resolves to keep the news secret. In her remaining time, she plots a course for various unfinished plans and deferred dreams: write a journal, leave future messages for her kids, make a stranger (Mark Ruffalo) fall in love with her. Obviously, the danger of sentimentality lurks in director Isabel Coixet's concept, and the film does have a few soggy moments. Some critics lost patience with the main character's seeming selfishness (a good post-movie conversation starter). Yet there is something powerful in her insistence on claiming a small piece of... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Sarah Polley - Scott Speedman - Leonor Watling - Mark Ruffalo Director(s): Isabel Coixet DVD Release Date: Released the 24 February 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Four extremely beautiful people do extremely horrible things to one another in Closer, Mike Nichols' pungent adaptation of Patrick Marber's play that easily marks the Oscar-winning director's best work in years. Anna (Julia Roberts) is a photographer who specializes in portraits of strangers; Dan (Jude Law) is an obituary writer struggling to become a novelist; Alice (Natalie Portman) is an American stripper freshly arrived in London after a bad relationship; and Larry (Clive Owen) is a dermatologist who finds love under the most unlikely of circumstances. When their paths cross it's a dizzying supernova of emotions, as Nichols and Marber adroitly construct various scenes out of their lives that pair them again and again in various permutations of passion, heartbreak, anger,... More Info about this DVD Director(s): Mike Nichols DVD Release Date: Released the 29 March 2005 Usually ships in 24 hours
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Zach Braff (from the TV show Scrubs) stars in his writing/directing debut, Garden State--normally a doomed act of hubris, but Braff pulls it off with unassuming charm. An emotionally numb actor in L.A., Andrew (Braff) comes back to New Jersey after nine years away for his mother's funeral. Andrew avoids his bitter father (Ian Holm, The Sweet Hereafter) and joins old friends (including the superb Peter Sarsgaard, Boys Don't Cry) in a round of parties. Along the way he meets a girl (Natalie Portman, Beautiful Girls) with demons of her own; bit by bit the two offer each other a little healing. Plotwise, Garden State is familiar stuff, a cross between The Graduate and a Meg Ryan movie, but Braff has an eye for goofy but resonant visual images,... More Info about this DVD Actor(s): Natalie Portman - Peter Sarsgaard DVD Release Date: Released the 28 December 2004 Usually ships in 24 hours
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