The Kids Are All Right

A good slice of life film - and topical.
The Kids Are All Right is a thoroughly entertaining slice-of-life domestic drama about two kids who look up their sperm-donor father, causing cataclysmic changes in the family dynamic. Not a unique premise save that the parents of the kids happen to be lesbians.

The entire cause célèbre for this film is to show straight America how "normal" gay families are and that they shouldn't be afraid of "gay marriage" or "gay parenting," thus it doesn't delve too deep or wander too far off topic. Political film making is a tricky business. You'll remember the Tom Hanks drama Philadelphia was maligned by the LGBT activist fringe for all the issues it didn't address; to which my answer has always been: it's a two hour film, if you add too many spicy issues you're left with an unpalatable polemic.

The script and direction by Lisa Cholodenko (High Art) are tight, well focused and only occasionally heavy-handed. Her characters are fresh, while being...

I Liked Overall, But Had A Problem With A Few Things In The Story...
I found this movie to be very well-acted and well-directed.
The sexual scenes didn't bother me not one bit, like some of the other reviewers.
I mean, COME ON!!---This is life in the 21st Century!--Grow up already!
People get naked and they interact, okay?---Thank goodness that computers and gadgets
haven't spoiled that for us (yet!), as it has with basic conversational skills and other forms
of by-gone or slowly dying human interaction.

I actually know both a lesbian couple, as well as a gay male couple who
are living similar circumstances as in the premise of this movie.
I found it very modern, refreshing, and mature in it's approach to the subject matter.
I have long been a fan of Mark Ruffalo, Julianne Moore and Annette Benning's work,
and I also thought "the kids" themselves did an excellent job at portraying their roles.
My problem was in that I felt like the Mark Ruffalo character kind of had his once happy
and...

Entertaining but flawed indie comedy/drama (3 1/2 stars)
Yes, this movie is probably being at least a little overpraised by the critics. I suspect many of them consider it "brave" for a film to depict an ordinary American family, whose parents just happen to be lesbians. Let's face it, awards voters and critics love anything that deals with race, homosexuality, or any of the other hot-button social topics (witness the dreck known as "Crash" winning Best Picture a few years ago).

None of which is meant to detract from The Kids are All Right, which is still quite an enjoyable small film. The acting especially is uniformly good. Annette Bening is sure to receive an Oscar nomination (well deserved), for her fantastic performance as Nic, the tightly-wound, more responsible half of the married couple formed by herself and Julianne Moore. Moore is also excellent playing Jules, a more aimless free-spirit type - their differences are a source of much of the comedy in the film. In all respects but their sexual orientation, they are a...

Click to Editorial Reviews