NekoHomey Purely Joyful Movie!

Exoticalot People are voting emotionally.

SpunkySelfTwitter It’s an especially fun movie from a director and cast who are clearly having a good time allowing themselves to let loose.

Derrick Gibbons An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

someofusarebrave I gotta say, when I first read the reviews of this movie never having seen it before, I thought that the reviewers were being typically chauvinistic patriarchal drones and giving it such low scores because it was a movie about women, and they did not appreciate movies about women. I thought they simply could not understand the beauty of such a multi-generational film. I thought they were just being jerks.I have since learned that they were right.This movie IS awful. It did not have to be awful--in fact, it ought to have been good. Many of the actresses in this film are excellent and are stars in their own right; the supporting cast of men looked solid.The acting was good. That was the only redeemable bit of the movie.The fact that Sandra Bullock can be watchable even in the dregs like this movie speaks more to her talent than the movie's success.If there is one theme however that films "about women" insist upon time and time again, however, it is that looks can be deceiving.The direction of this film was terrible. The editing was worse.The core story of this film--abusive mother becomes alcoholic in her old age after having raised a bipolar, far-too-straitlaced daughter.They yell, they scream, they have conflicts and they resolve them.Now, this movie could have been made in a new and exciting way. It could have been great. It could have really called our mothers to task for using alcohol as a coping mechanism for all and sundry, and it could have called ourselves to task for using work and lack of a social life as a way to avoid the past. It could have opened our eyes to the ways we fall into whatever relationship opportunities present themselves rather than make truly genuine and thus difficult decisions.It could have; it did not.The movie spent half its time in flashbacks, which has never particularly been a favorite story-telling mechanism of mine. It spent its entire middle engaged in fairly useless fighting between the main character's mother and fiancée and father, which wasted time. The flashbacks' significance or impact on Siddalee were rarely explained, leaving us to guess as to Why We Should Care. For those of us who did not grow up in the South, the sudden entrance into a way of life we had no familiarity with whatsoever was jolting, to say the least. There was little-to-no context given to any of the revelations meant to explain it all. There was too much the rest of the time.Meanwhile, no one stopped drinking, Siddalee never got the opportunity to actually confront her mother regarding her mother's abuses, and Siddalee's father never left the woman who tortured him for so long.Meaning, no one ever got the opportunity to be human--instead they became caricatures in a story 'bout how Forgiveness Heals All.This is a story about crazy white people doing crazy white people things and never acknowledging or even seeming to realize that the things they were doing were completely 100% insane and pointless.Nice job, y'all, and I DO mean that sarcastically. Nice job.

shamrocker317 This movie was suggested to me on netflix several months ago but I never had time to watch it or had it sent to my house. Last week I had decided to watch it and it blew me away!!! Since last week I have watched the entire movie 5 times and already bought the DVD. The cast was simply amazing. Ashley Judd's performance as Vivi was spectacular at playing this simple yet "wounded" character. If you are someone who has gone through hardships you will definitely appreciate this movie.It is vivid, moving, and witty.Definitely an all time favorite :)

Marina This is a nicely done story of how a young woman comes to learn about some of the difficult circumstances behind some of her worst childhood memories, and thus stops being a victim to them. I don't want to address specifics lest I ruin it for you. The cast is nothing short of awesome, the story is very good - I highly recommend this one. Fionnula Flanagan particularly sparkled, as did Maggie Smith.The trailer for this movie was VERY poorly done, so I avoided it for years. However, I got roped into watching it one night & I was shocked that I loved it. The character development was, for the most part, very well done. The subject matter was close to what one might see in their real life as opposed to over-glamorized dramatizations of what goes on in real life - I think this fact may be why this movie was not so well received. You will hear about the events being retold, but your heart strings will not be gratuitously pulled, and the characters do not wallow in grief & drama. You'll have to think for yourself, pay attention, & make up your own mind about things as they play out, but it's worth it.

scurry37 one of my 3 all time favorites. i loved it all. the cast was perfect. i've watched it about 73 times so far. love to see an uncut version. the lines were great and i haven't been able to pick out a favorite character, line, nor scene. it was all good. Angus was perfect for his role. i had seen him in a few other flicks, but this really opened my eyes to his abilities. James G. is always good. All the women played magnificent parts. I'd like to know some of the background on how they prepared for the different stages of their characters to be able to blend the different times. that should be interesting. i watch it about 2 times a week - even 4 years later.