August: Osage County

One of the smartest decisions that director John Wells made in adapting Tracy Letts' 2008 Tony and Pulitzer Prize-winning, darkly comic drama was to film it in the dense heat of Bartlesville in Oklahoma's parched Osage County. Venomous, tart-tongued Violet (Meryl Streep) is the paranoid, pill-popping matriarch of the dysfunctional Weston family. Her harsh irascibility has made her a tough combatant—currently enduring chemotherapy for mouth cancer—but that same trait has also driven away loved ones. A sudden tragedy reunites her three grown daughters in the sprawling Weston house, where they spew a multitude of recriminations and regrets. Exasperated Barbara (Julia Roberts) arrives from Colorado with her estranged college professor husband (Ewan McGregor) and their precocious, pot-smoking 14-year-old daughter (Abigail Breslin). Middle-sister Ivy (Julianne Nicholson) has been dutifully caring for Violet and their long-suffering alcoholic father (Sam Shepard) but yearns to move to New York City. Flighty wild child Karen (Juliette Lewis) is the youngest, popping in with her fiancé (Dermot Mulroney), a sleazy Florida hustler. Also present are Violet's secretive sister (Margo Martindale), the latter's compassionate husband (Chris Cooper), and their clumsy, slow-witted son (Benedict Cumberbatch). These complicated, cantankerous characters are richly drawn and psychologically believable, serving up scalding dialogue that is both acerbic and clever. But the stylized monologues make this far more effective on stage than it is on film under the over-the-top direction by Wells. Still, this is an acting showcase—with Oscar nominees Streep and Roberts particularly powerful—even if the tepid, upbeat conclusion (which differs from the play) seems forced. Recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by director John Wells and cinematographer Adriano Goldman, a “making-of” featurette (20 min.), deleted scenes with optional commentary (11 min.), and a featurette with playwright Tracy Letts (8 min.). Bottom line: a fine extras package for this acting free-for-all stage adaptation.] (S. Granger)