Mid-Century/Mid-Life Madness

Rating: 8/10 (11 February 2009)

I loved this film, and I'm disappointed that it didn't receive more Oscar nods. I suspect it resonates more with women, than men. Not only are the roles of wife/mother/social being/etc. timeless, but I felt the crux of the story was April's descent into madness. She was not a well woman, and I see so little written up about it. She was not just dreamy-eyed about escaping the suburbs, but suffered from some sort of mental illness. I felt for her, and I agree that she was stronger than Frank, but her instability brought the couple's dynamic further down. Dreaming of dropping out, adultery, frustration over kids and suburban monotony are all part of (mid?) life, miserable as it may be at times. Frank tried to deal with them, though constricted by an exasperating, energy-draining wife. The 50s sets, costumes, etc. were beautiful, making the film more inviting to sink into, and I really appreciated everyone's performance. At first I, too, felt that poor, ageless Leo may be out of his league (I think that every time I see him, but then he settles into the role and, in no time, I am totally believing he is Howard Hughes!). And I noticed Frank's aging, too, or was it angst-ing? The Michael Shannon thing is a little lost on me. I just don't see that brief role as such a stretch. They say playing crazy is easy, but I say that Kate Winslet's slow slimmer to the pit of despair would be impossible for the average good actress in Hollywood to portray these days. And P.S. I would have preferred to see Kathy Bates get a nod for her role.