Weekly Review -- Award-winning weekend

The Kids Are All Right (2010) -- Known for her layered examinations of human behavior, Lisa Cholodenko is one of those rare filmmakers who lay out life's ephemeral qualities and leave them open for interpretation. Having analyzed the struggle between self-discovery and ambition (High Art) and journeys into adulthood (Laurel Canyon), she now looks at the post-nuclear family in The Kids Are All Right.

Nic (Annette Bening) and Jules (Julianne Moore) have been together for nearly twenty years. Having raised two teenage children -- Joni (Mia Wasikowska) and Laser (Josh Hutcherson) -- their relationship has turned into a not-so-blissful domesticity. When Joni and Laser set off to meet their biological father and their mothers' sperm donor, the free-spirited entrepreneur Paul (Mark Ruffalo), the family's routine unravels into humorous, poignant and unexpected developments...

What I have always appreciated about Cholodenko's work is that no subject is ever black and white. Kids is not an exception, dealing with and challenging our preconceived notions of commitment and the fluidity of sexuality. In a unique twist, Cholodenko makes a sharp distinction between the two, injecting a dose of honesty and unpredictability into the story and asking us in the process -- is this not what life is?

**HUGE SPOILERS AHEAD**

I can understand how the affair between Jules and Paul could have been a delicate issue for the gay community, to say the least. I can see how the film's abrupt landing into standard and heterosexual romcom territory could have been seen as controversial, even as a betrayal, by many people. Personally, I did not think that the narrative required it, since I believe that the story of children bringing a third party into the parent fold would have been intriguing enough. Still, I ask that we all open our minds. We do not know if Jules is gay or bisexual; we do not know if she had ever been with men before meeting the love of her life, who just so happened to be a woman. The point is, it does not matter. Falling for someone is falling for someONE -- note the absence of a gender-specific pronoun. Committed relationships are not immune to extramarital affairs, and gender is not a determining factor in these occurrences.

**END OF SPOILERS**

The acting is excellent. Bening is a true force of nature as a mother protecting her family at all costs, alternating between Nic's controlling and doting attributes. Moore gives an equally terrific performance as an insecure woman lacking passion who, after having searched for it outside her relationship, returns as a stronger wife and mother. As Paul, Ruffalo finds comedic timing within the changes that his character is facing, the sobering reminders of a maturity that has somehow managed to pass him by over the years. Wasikowska and Hutcherson are both revelations as the siblings, whose natural curiosity leads to events that may alter their lives in unforeseen and irreversible ways.

The Kids Are All Right is another proof that Cholodenko is one of the most courageous filmmakers working today. Her portrayals of people are painstakingly accurate and her views of life's conundrums never leave viewers cold, inspiring debate and daring us to reconsider our beliefs. Her latest piece is a thought-provoking study of the bond between soulmates and the strength of commitment, soothing us into a firm conviction that yes, the kids are all right indeed.

8/10


The Town (2010) -- I will go right ahead and say it: Ben Affleck is better at directing than he is at acting. As an actor, he is mostly decent; as a director, he finds details and nuances, breathing life into situations that another filmmaker may have handled in a cliched manner. Like his directorial debut, Gone Baby Gone, The Town is both a crime drama and Affleck's love note to his city.

Robber Doug MacRay (Affleck) and his crew, including his best friend James (Jeremy Renner), are in the middle of a heist spree. After a job during which they took bank manager Claire (Rebecca Hall) hostage, Doug and Claire fall for one another through sheer happenstance. Torn between his loyalties and his new love, and pursued by a ruthless FBI agent (Jon Hamm), Doug knows he has to make a choice, but how can a man whose life has been based on predetermined mistakes ever make the right decision?

As in Affleck's previous directorial effort, Boston is one of the main characters. The sprawling streets and gloomy corners of the city's underbelly are merciless in the context of the transgressions, but strangely comforting in the context of a nascent love story. Affleck puts this environment under a microscope, without judging its notoriety even once. He prefers to simply paint the picture of a harsh existence, rather than preach about the drawbacks, gloss them over and lose their essence. All of his characters are caught up in the darkness and all are attempting to find themselves before Charlestown's way of life swallows them whole. The gritty cinematography is the work of Robert Elswit, who creates a gray and ominous grotto with a soul, making the proceedings that much more fascinating.

The acting is excellent across the board. Affleck and Hall are achingly believable as two strangers who come together under the most brutal of circumstances, and Hamm is delightfully bureaucratic as the relentless FBI agent closing in on Doug's gang. The best acting, though, comes from Jeremy Renner and Blake Lively. Renner's James is a picture of volatility, a hardened felon whose consciousness is so steeped in mayhem that his only redemptive trait is his fierce loyalty. Apart from the principal liaison, it is Doug and James's friendship that is at the heart of the film. Neither of the two ever forget where they have come from, but Doug has the common sense to avoid any more pitfalls, while James has no clue where to begin and has made peace with himself. As Krista, James's sister and Doug's ex-girlfriend, Lively shows a startlingly rough side of herself. Like Sara Paxton had done in The Last House on the Left, Lively's turn as a troubled single mother shows that she is capable of much more than teen-oriented fare. Lastly, the late Pete Postlethwaite and Chris Cooper give stellar performances as a criminal mastermind and Doug's incarcerated father, respectively.

The Town is a truly engaging crime saga. It is a visceral film that pays as much attention to its inhabitants and relationships as it does to its glorious action sequences. This town is not the most pleasant place you will visit, but it is certainly one of the most spirited locales you will see in your lifetime.

8/10