I recently attended a press screening for The Kids Are All Right and thought the movie was ‘All Right.’ No I’m just kidding, it was actually pretty good for the most part. The movie stars Julianne Moore, Annette Bening, Mark Ruffalo, Mia Wasikowska, Josh Hutcherson and is directed by Lisa Cholodenko. In case you don’t know, the movie is about these two kids who were brought to life through artificial insemination, aka have lesbian parents, and decide to contact their sperm donor and bring him into their family life. Sounds wacky, I know, but you if it even remotely peaks your interest then check out more of my thoughts, my video review, and the official synopsis of the movie after the jump.
Official Synopsis: Nic and Jules (Annette Bening and Julianne Moore) are married and share a cozy suburban Southern California home with their teenage children, Joni and Laser (Mia Wasikowska and Josh Hutcherson). Nic and Jules – or, when referred to jointly by Joni, “Moms” – gave birth to and raised their children, and built a family life for the four of them. As Joni prepares to leave for college, 15-year-old Laser presses her for a big favor. He wants Joni, now 18, to help him find their biological father; the two teenagers were conceived by donor insemination.
Against her better judgment, Joni honors her brother’s request and manages to make contact with “bio-dad” Paul (Mark Ruffalo), an easygoing restaurateur. The kids find themselves drawn to the confirmed bachelor’s footloose style – especially in contrast to Nic, a principled doctor who has long established their house rules. Jules, who has been looking to start a new career in landscaping, also strikes up a rapport with Paul. As Paul comes into the lives of the forthright four, an unexpected new chapter begins for them as family ties are defined, re-defined, and then re-re-defined.
Video Review followed by further thoughts not mentioned in the review
The one point I failed to mention in my review was one of the subplots, specifically the subplot based around the relationship between Mark Ruffalo (father) and Josh Hutcherson (artificial son). This was the one negative aspect of the movie because it brought nothing to the table and included Josh’s friend in the picture. His friend was an asshole and everyone was telling him he should stay away from his friend, who would always do stupid shit. There were things like the friend jumping off a roof with his skateboard and then later trying to pee on a dog. All of this was to show that he shouldn’t be friends with the kid. In my opinion it brought no substance to the movie and actually detracted a bit from it. Other than that everything else stands correct in my review.
Trailer
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