| Growing Up |
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| written by talltale |
January 26, 2006 - 6:17 AM PST |
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5 out of 6 members found this review helpful
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The more you get to know the various characters in THUMBSUCKER, the better you understand and appreciate them. A growing-up, coming-of-age drama that offers a different perspective, this lovely little movie is a quiet treat for filmgoers starved for real "family films." It demonstrates via one specific example how so many families have trouble understanding and dealing each other--and themselves.
Director and co-writer (with Walter Kirn, on whose novel the film is based) Mike Mills has done a wonderful job here. The movie builds well, from its opening scenes (which seem rather ordinary), to its middle, as the characters open up and begin to surprise us, to its wonderful conclusion, which should have you rooting for everyone--especially the sweet lead, played to perfection by Lou Taylor Pucci (who was also fine in "The Chumbscrubber").
Vincent D'Onofrio gives another of his unshowy, from-the-inside-out performances, and Tilda Swinton has perhaps never looked more beautiful nor seemed as utterly natural and normal--a real mom, even more so than in "The Deep End." Keanu Reeves and Vince Vaughn play against type and both do memorable jobs, as does Benjamin Bratt in his single surprising and revelatory scene. This movie's a lot subtler than most--which may account for why some viewers give up on it too soon. Don't. |
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