LFF 2010: 'The Kids Are All Right'

Director Lisa Cholodenko catches Annette Bening and Julianne Moore in fine form in this excellent comedy-drama about an unravelling suburban family. The pair play Nic and Jules, a couple raising two children - Joni (Mia Wasikowska) and Laser (Josh Hutcherson) - that they conceived via an anonymous sperm donor. When Joni turns 18, Laser pesters her to seek out their biological dad, the easy-going restaurateur Paul (Mark Ruffalo). With Paul keen to leave bachelorhood behind and have a family, he begins to ease into Nic and Jules's alternative clan. Before long, he's a little too close for comfort.

The Kids Are All Right is funny, moving and wonderfully acted. A decade ago Bening was the dominant force in American Beauty, and here she's at the centre of another family in crisis. Unlike Sam Mendes's film, though, Cholodenko isn't interested in grand theatrics and plate smashing, instead shading her characters with subtle gestures and expressions. Everyone faces difficult personal challenges; for the kids it's accepting their father and moving away from dubious friendships, for the grown-ups its filling rapidly expanding chasms in their lives. The fact that Kids zeroes in on a same-sex marriage could have led to an insufferable quirk factor, but Cholodenko presents them with the same problems that any family could encounter.

The movie's centrepiece is a dinner scene at Paul's home, where he manages to break through Nic's wall of indifference by joining her in an a capella rendition of Joni Mitchell's 'All I Want'. Just as a kinship begins to develop, Nic makes a devastating discovery in the bathroom and the whole dynamic switches. Cholodenko masterfully weaves these moments of humour, drama and despair together. It's to her credit that it's impossible to dislike Paul, despite the strife he causes the family. He's a fully-rounded character with believable foibles - the same goes for the rest of the cast. This is a masterfully played family story and one of the sharpest films of the year.


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