August: Osage County

"thank god we can't tell the future. we'd never get out of bed." i know some people don't like it when plays are adapted to screen without much changing, keeping most of the original scenes completely intact. it leads to scenes that run long, conflicts being primarily told through dialogue, and a more loose attitude to relevant sub-plots and a clear, central protagonist. however, i really like them when done well: glengarry glen ross is a near perfect film. there are two assumptions you could make about august: osage county, and they are that it's a sentimental film about a family reuniting... read more

thank god we can't tell the future, we could never get out of bed. read more

this film is a powerhouse of acting. a powerhouse with streep delivering another award worthy performance. she is just amazing. chris cooper is phenomenal as well, another stand out. but every one is great here, even julia roberts, who i never thought (sans erin brockovich) was in the same class. take away the acting and you are left with a film that is low on originality, slow and overlong and short on story. it's not a bad film and it looks really good but i was expecting better. it's a family drama that goes to the extreme and if it was maybe 20 minutes shorter then maybe it would be more... read more