Directing his first film from his own script, playwright Adam Rapp (brother of Rent co-star Anthony, who has a small role here as a hitchhiking literature student) serves up a feeble domestic drama about a surly young actress making peace with her estranged father, a reclusive J.D. Salinger-like novelist who apparently hasn't written anything in years. There's nothing inherently wrong with an old-fashioned story about familial reconciliation, of course, but this one never rings true; by turns clumsily melodramatic, ostentatiously quirky, and crudely sentimental, the picture feels like warmed-up cinematic leftovers. The cast looks strong on paper, with Zooey Deschanel as the daughter and Ed Harris as her dad, but neither is in top form, and while some might be attracted by the presence of Will Ferrell as a shy, withdrawn man-child (and would-be rock guitarist) whom the novelist has taken on as his general factotum, Ferrell really sinks the film, giving a performance reminiscent of Robin Williams' bad serious roles. The conclusion of Winter Passing is entirely predictable: despite their initial animosities, all of the oddball characters bond and form an unlikely sort of family—but while the ending is happy, it's also as phony and contrived as everything that's preceded it. Not recommended. [Note: DVD extras include a behind-the-scenes featurette (4 min.), and trailers. Bottom line: a paltry extras package for a disappointing film.] (F. Swietek)
Winter Passing
Fox, 98 min., R, DVD: $27.98, May 16 Volume 21, Issue 3
Winter Passing
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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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