The Kids Are All Right

I thought I was going to hate this movie. It may be cynical on my part, but when I read a review describing it as a "heart warming family adventure" I sort of cringe. I am glad to say that I was pleasantly surprised. It is not the heart warming family adventure I read about, but a sort of interestingly perceptive film. It's about two kids who've been raised by a lesbian couple. The kids have sought out their biological father (through the sperm donation facility) and he turns out to be a hippie gardener dude. He's definitely a dude. He's pretty laid back (played by Mark Ruffalo of Shutter Island) and thinks its pretty groovy that he's found these kids (played by Mia Wasikowska of Alice in Wonderland and Josh Hutchinson of countless Disney ventures; they're both very good). The lesbian couple is going through hard times, their daughter is going off to college soon, this man has entered into their lives, and they aren't getting along as well as they used to (Julianne Moore and Anette Bening play the couple extraordinarily well). From that point onward, paranoia and child rebellion begin, and that's what makes the movie better than some quirky indie dramedy. For, the film is very good at picking up on family situations that actually exist. One terrific scene has a livid Anette Bening freaking out at dinner with another couple and walking off telling her partner to fuck off. The partner (Moore) then gets up and goes to console Bening. It is clear from a scene like that that there's a certain way these people deal with problems, and that they know it is good enough for me. From the way the kids act to the way the mothers can be total bitches, it's an honest movie. And pretty damn good.
The Kids Are All Right (how many more shitty titles will this year churn out?): ★★★