Fabulous acting, heart-wrenching story

Rating: 8/10 (18 April 2009)

Revolutionary Road is probably most known for its long awaited reunion of Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet. The duo last met in 1997 on a doomed cruise ocean liner in the phenomenally famous blockbuster Titanic. Ironically enough, in 2008, the sinking ship in this situation is their marriage. Through a series of violent arguments and morally questionable behavior, Frank and April Wheeler play the exact opposites of Jack and Rose. Instead of being driven mad with affection for each other, they are stuck in an unhappy relationship being driven mad by all the restrictions that their stagnant lifestyle imposes on them.
Trapped in the confines of 1950s suburbia, the Wheelers are living with their children in a quiet little house on a quiet little street. April stays at home and Frank goes to the office. Every day, though, things progress more and more into disillusion as the two start to wonder where their hopes and dreams went. Their lives have been restricted to boundaries of their seemingly picture-perfect life, but on the inside, the strains of commitment and ennui have weakened their relationship significantly. The film is somewhat of a mockery of how we are all forced to hide our problems and put on the old dog-and-pony show to make us look nice on the outside, while behind closed doors there are struggles no one can imagine. Things start looking up for the Wheelers when April suggests that they move to Paris and finally do what they've always wanted to do. An unexpected pregnancy, though, prevents them from going and so begins a slow, downward spiral that's painful but fascinating to watch.
The performances of Kate and Leo are arguably the strongest of each of their careers. There's, objectively, nothing to criticize about them. So much pain and emotion flies between them that just watching the Wheelers exchange words is exhausting. Even though their characters are constantly hurling insults at each other, there's still an innate chemistry between them that makes them mesmerizing to watch on screen. DiCaprio's performance all but brought tears to my eyes as the husband who tries his very best to support his family, but is fed up with his mind-numbing job. His tense relationship with his counterpart only makes him all the more stressed and genuinely confused about how to fix the situation. April seems like more of the free spirit and although Frank cares for her, their values are starkly different. One particular scene that especially moved me was after a particularly bad episode with April, he comes downstairs to find her calmly cooking breakfast as though nothing even happened the night before. In response to April slinging an "I hate you" at him the previous night, he just looks at her and asks—something to the effect of—"you don't hate me, right?" It's just a few, simple words, but they succeed in being the most poignant words spoken throughout the whole movie. It's great acting, and DiCaprio does not disappoint.
Kate Winslet has never been under appreciated as an actor, and rightfully so. Every movie she's in, romantic, dramatic, funny, what have you, she always plays the part. She has mind-blowing versatility, and Revolutionary Road is no exception. April would be easy to make into the villain. After all, she's upstaging her family in pursuit of a pipe dream, she has unrealistic expectations of her husband, and she's overzealous (arguably, to a fault) when it comes to the chase of said dreams. Winslet, though, is able to make a sympathetic plight for April. Although a severely flawed character, she's still humanized and relatable. Not to mention, she's a powerhouse screen presence and she's so tapped in emotionally to her part that it's riveting.
The general consensus among critics and audiences is the not-so-cheery ending. One can't help knowing that something bad is coming considering the gloomy tone of the whole storyline, but thanks to DiCaprio and Winslet, the depressing plot is still watchable. Mostly due to the actors, Revolutionary Road may not have been a hit during awards season (whoever is responsible for DiCaprio not earning an Oscar nomination should be locked up), but I was glad I saw it. The directing (by Winslet's husband, Sam Mendes) is precise enough to allow the actors to do what they do best and the source material (the novel by Richard Yates) is nothing to sneeze at. Hopefully, Kate and Leo will reunite in the near future to deliver the same gripping performances as this one.
My grade: B+