Filmmaker Lisa Cholodenko's engaging The Kids Are All Right stars Julianne Moore and Annette Bening as Jules and Nic, a married couple of nearly 20 years, who each bore a child by artificial insemination. Nic (Bening) is a dedicated and controlling doctor, while stay-at-home Jules (Moore) has experimented with various careers and is now into landscaping. But the pair's comfortable suburban existence is threatened when their inquisitive teenagers Joni and Laser (Mia Wasikowska, Josh Hutcherson) secretly decide to contact the anonymous sperm donor who is their biological father—roguish Paul (Mark Ruffalo), a hippie-like local restaurateur who rides a motorcycle and tends an organic garden. After an inevitably tentative and awkward first encounter, the kids are soon enjoying hanging out with Paul, and once Jules and Nic find out, Paul is invited to dinner, after which he engages Jules to renovate his overgrown backyard. From that point, the plot twists and turns, grappling with commitment issues inherent in long-term relationships in this character-driven, rite-of-passage comedic drama that is intelligent, often hilarious, and very effective thanks to the quirky yet convincing performances. Moore is endearingly vulnerable, Bening astonishes with her bravura style, and Ruffalo emanates the sweetly poignant wistfulness of a perennial bachelor. Highly recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include audio commentary by director/co-writer Lisa Cholodenko, “The Journey to Forming a Family” production featurette (5 min.), a “making-of” featurette (3 min.), a segment on “The Writer's Process” (3 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release is the BD-Live function. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a winning film.] (S. Granger)
The Kids Are All Right
Focus, 107 min., R, DVD: $29.98, Blu-ray: $39.98, Nov. 16 Volume 25, Issue 6
The Kids Are All Right
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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