August: Osage County

Family, can't live with them. Can't live without them. Family dramas can be a dime a dozen but when handled right, they can be home runs drilled out of the ballpark. I didn't necessarily have a ton of interest in catching up with 2013's August: Osage County because it did look a little too familiar, but I'm glad I did. An excellent movie all-around, and as I mentioned periodically while viewing, just a disgusting, talented cast.

It is an especially hot August in the small Oklahoma town of Pawhuska, and the Weston family is in for some fireworks. Family matriarch (of sorts) Violet (Meryl Streep) has been diagnosed with mouth cancer and quickly becoming addicted to the pain pills she's been prescribed. The family has drifted apart over the years, but Violet has to ask them for help, to return to their hometown when their father, Beverly (Sam Shepard), goes missing. There's no trace of where he went to or if he will even be back, but the Westons return in a time of trouble to help their mother (some against their better judgment), including the Weston's oldest daughter, Barbara (Julia Roberts). The family is far from close though, many of them barely able to stand the site of each other. All those buried away emotions and feelings are getting churned up, and they're going to be churned up even more when news of where Beverly went is revealed.

Based on a play of the same name by Tracy Letts, 'August' was a bit of an under the radar flick last winter in terms of Oscar buzz. It made over $70 million in theaters and picked up mostly positive reviews. With this cast, how could it not? Reading reviews, watching previews, I didn't question that it'd be a good movie. I kinda just assumed in that department. But did I want to see it? Need to see it? No, not particularly. I'm glad I did though. It is well worth a couple hours to sit down and watch even if it is equal parts funny and uncomfortable, things changing from one to the other at a moment's notice.

But that's family, isn't it? And that's your movie. These aren't good guys and bad guys. These are people who grew up and reacted/responded differently to their parents, their siblings, their extended families, their house, their school, their surroundings and their environment. That's life, and that is what the movie does so well. That's what life is, and the script by Letts (off the play) does it pretty effortlessly. Much of the movie takes place in the Weston home with an occasional, quick departure here and there. All that frustration and emotion and discomfort has been bottled up for years, and this not so pleasant reunion may be the thing that blows the top right off that stove. Most of that pent-up emotion comes out at a painfully real dinner scene, but more on that later.

But seriously, how about this cast?!? You almost take for granted what a freakishly good actress Meryl Streep is because....well, every year she's in another Oscar-nominated part (she's been nominated 18 times. 18!!!). Streep just commits to each and every part to the point you never even question her. You just go with it. Her Violet is a terrifying character (maybe because my Mom is...ya know, really nice), a mother who had a hellacious childhood and at times takes it out on her kids. She means well -- I think -- but it comes across in some odd ways. The main personal dynamic is between Streep's Violet and Robert's Barbara (both Oscar-nominated turns), a mother and daughter who argue almost constantly, maybe not admitting they're more similar than they would like. Just two supremely talented actresses doing their thing.

But wait. There's more!!! Along with Shepard in a quick appearance early, there's also Violet's sister, Mattie Fae (Margo Martindale), her husband, Charlie (Chris Cooper), and their son, Little Charles (Benedict Cumberbatch), much maligned in the eyes of his mother and often protected by his father. As for the other Weston sisters, there's Ivy (Julianne Nicholson), single and getting a little older who never moved away from her hometown, and Karen (Juliette Lewis), the youngest sister who means well but is a tad bit clueless. Who else to look for? Ewan McGregor plays Barbara's husband, the longtime couple struggling through some serious issues, Abigail Breslin their rebellious teenage daughter, and Dermot Mulroney as Karen's new boyfriend and recent fiance who you just know is up to something in the slimy department and Misty Upham as Johnna, the Native American (or Injun, whatever you like) caretaker Beverly hires for Violet before his disappearance.

Some complaints were that for a dark comedy, there wasn't enough...well, comedy. There are laughs, but there is far more in the old drama department. The dinner scene is the heart of the movie, some genuine, out-loud laughs that quickly transition into painful, real moments that you could see happening at any long, overdue family reunion. The movie goes down some surprising routes in the second half and let's face it, a happy ending here just wasn't going to happen. This is a drama about the story, about the drama, about the acting. Highly recommended. If you're a fan of family/friend dramas from Home for the Holidays to The Family Stone, The Big Chill to Rain Man, you'll enjoy this one, hopefully a whole lot.

August: Osage County (2013): *** 1/2 /****

The Grey

When the trailers for 2011's The Grey were released, I was skeptical but at least a little intrigued. It was another movie that had very talented Liam Neeson being a bad-ass again (Taken, The Dark Knight, Titans), this time fighting wolves in a survivalist story. Then, when it was released, I heard all sorts of arguments and dissension over the ending...mostly, that it was lousy. So Neeson killing wolves with an ending that did its best to divide viewers? Color me curious.

Working for an oil drilling company in Alaska, hired gun and wolf-killer Ottway (Neeson) boards a plane with 20-some oil drillers, the dregs of society as far as anyone is concerned. Flying in horrific weather, the plane crashes in the isolated, desolate wilderness with only seven survivors, including Ottway. Low on both food and water, the survivors try to band together to make it from day-to-day, but there's something else. A pack of wolves is patrolling around the wreck site, and they're not waiting long. Just hours after their arrival, the wolves start attacking the survivors. Can Ottway lead them to safety, or at least hold off the vicious animals until help arrives?

Trailers, commercials and most TV spots built this Joe Carnahan-directed movie as an action-packed thrill ride, a group of supermen doing battle with wolves. Yeah, long story short? That's not the movie this is at all. It is a story about surviving, about battling through extreme adversity, about a will to live when everything in you and around you begs you to give up. Filmed in British Columbia, it is a lonely, chilling story that isn't necessarily entertaining, but I don't think it's supposed to be. By the end of the 117-minute movie, you feel cold, tired, wiped out and just plan exhausted. Yes, the small band of survivors fight wolves, but it's survival. They do so or die. They don't attack. They defend themselves. The will to live is a powerful weapon, one that can be hard to beat.

Going in another more fan-friendly, crowd-pleasing story, Neeson is a perfect choice to play the steely-eyed, cold as ice lead, Ottway. With his sniper rifle, he hovers over the oil sites, protecting the drillers from anything nature can throw at them (in this case, wolves). As we meet Ottway, he's hit his limit and only through a mechanical glitch is he still alive after a suicide attempt. But once the plane crashes and the survivors turn to him and his expertise, he has a reason to live, a reason to keep on fighting. Neeson is a very talented actor, but there's nothing wrong with being very talented and playing roles that are a little fun too. His fellow survivors include Diaz (Frank Grillo), the pessimist, Talget (Dermot Mulroney), the scruffy single father, Hendrick (Dallas Roberts), the rational medic, Flannery (Joe Anderson), the frantic worrier, Burke (Nonso Anozie), the sick survivor, and Hernandez (Ben Bray).

In not doing two hours of continuous wolf attacks, Carnahan has a lot of time (and that's a good thing) to develop the situation. The plane wreck is harrowing without being incredibly detailed, a terrifying ordeal to survive. The aftermath in all its carnage -- including frozen corpses -- is just as gruesome, but it's the more personal, emotional moments that work better. One dying driller (James Badge Dale) is freaking out, looking for someone to tell him he'll be okay, Neeson's Ottway instead being honest with him. He quietly and assuredly explains that death will not be painful, it will be a peaceful moment in a highly memorable scene for Neeson. Later as the survivors trudge across the landscape, several scenes around fires have the men talking about their situation, about life and death, their beliefs. Subtle and moving, they're great scenes. Grillo as Diaz, the doubting (and cynical) Thomas, Mulroney as Talget and Roberts and Hendrick stand out from the group in a good way.

I also feel the need to defend the movie because so many viewers took it upon themselves to rip it, most notably its portrayal of wolves. Basically, wolves -- even packs of wolves -- don't attack humans, they're scared of them. Yes, it's a fair issue, but an unnecessary one that misses the point of the story. This isn't a nature documentary on Discovery Channel or Animal Planet. The wolves are a means to an end, a reason to drive these men to their limits. In the end, they become worthy adversaries, lurking in the shadows and waiting to strike. Carnahan gives them the Jaws-treatment, we rarely see the animals in their entirety. Their attacks are surprising and in a few cases, shocking. Great rivals for Ottway and his motley group of survivors.

And then there's the ending, a finale that did its best to divide the viewers. As the movie develops, I'm trying to figure where 'Grey' was heading. Is it all a dream? Were they all killed in the crash? I can thankfully say....NO, no dreams, hallucinations or metaphorical looks at life and death. The ending instead is ambiguous to a point (and watch through the credits for a quick follow-up scene). For me, it's a moving, appropriate ending, one that isn't ambiguous in the least. But it doesn't spell every little thing out for you, and ta-da! Viewers are pissed! How you come away from this one? Personal taste and judgment I suppose. I liked the ending a lot, even more so the more I think about it. Carnahan has carved a nice tough-guy movie niche for himself, and he continues it here. Not what it was as advertised as, but it's better because of it.

The Grey <---trailer (2011): ***/****