Movie Description
Jack Linden (Mark Ruffalo) and Hank Evans (Peter Krause) are best friends who both teach at the same university in a small New England town. They both are married and have young children, and Jack's wife, Terry (Laura Dern), is close with Hank's wife, Edith (Naomi Watts). But while things appear happy on the surface, there are smoldering pockets of discontent underneath. Financial struggle and domestic boredom has drained the passion from Jack and Terry's marriage, while Hank's numerous infidelities and self-absorption has prompted Edith to find both comfort and sexual fulfillment with Jack. As Jack begins spending more and more time with Edith, it becomes obvious to Terry, whose anger culminates in a sexual encounter with Hank. Now that the deception has come full circle, both couples are left to decide the futures of their shattered unions.
With a screenplay that incorporates "We Don't Live Here Anymore" and "Adultery," two short stories by Andre Dubus (IN THE BEDROOM), John Curran's film appears deceptively simple. While it's a garden-variety tale of suburban ennui and infidelity on the surface, it is brought to multi-layered life with a quartet of elegantly nuanced performances that fit together like the interlocking pieces of a puzzle. Plot is almost secondary to the emotional sparks that Ruffalo, Dern, Krause, and Watts give off, expertly and in equal measure.
| Credits | | Producer: | Harvey Kahn, Jonas Goodman | | Cast: | Laura Dern |
| Details | | Edition: | Letterboxed |
Notes
DVD Features:
Region (unknown)
Keep Case
Widescreen - 2.40
Audio:
Dolby Surround 5.1 English
Dolby Surround 5.1 French, IN THEATRES: AUGUST 13, 2004 (NY/LA)
Editorial Reviews
"[T]he film is at times harrowing to watch, yet it's also wry and delicate and absorbing. It's infused with the messy excitement of imperfect passion."
Entertainment Weekly - Owen Gleiberman (08/20/2004)
"[Dern] brings startling anger and anguish to her portrayal of a wronged wife."
Movieline - Stephen Farber (07/01/2004)
"[T]horoughly intelligent..."
New York Times - A. O. Scott (08/13/2004)
"[A]ffecting and sincere in the best sense..."
Los Angeles Times - Carina Chocano (08/13/2004)
"[L]iterate, erotic, brutally funny and touched by brilliance in its quartet of live-wire performances....Don't discount this film's power -- it doesn't sizzle, it stings."
Rolling Stone - Peter Travers (09/02/2004)
"A revelation."
USA Today - Claudia Puig
"Easily the best American movie so far this year"
New Yorker
"Good acting distinguishes this supple drama..."
Premiere - Andy Webster (03/01/2005)
"[T]his maintains its temperature to the final knock-out blows, shattering sureties. A fearless, uncommonly truthful film."
Uncut - Chris Roberts (05/01/2005)
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