Sad & Hopeless Film...Yet Well done & Great Acting

Rating: 6/10 (25 March 2018)

Winslet & DiCaprio do a fine job expressing the hopeless place that human beings can go when the big Questions of life are not dealt with outside of ones self. And truly, they display this despair, frustration, depression, confusion and hopelessness if any 2 people could in their performances. My husband & I watched this together, having been in unhealthy relationships in our younger lives (now in a wonderful marriage in our late 60's 70's). We both were saddened as we watched the well done development of their characters...the momentary hope...then despair & division. We both looked at each other, knowing that it wasn't so much about traditional marriage in the 50's "burbs" being the issue, as it was that they lacked tools in their tool chest. The tragedy was their inability to communicate effectively, love one another in a healthy way, and in our opinion...being happily married so many yrs...to have a spiritual foundation that helps people be close & forgiving. In this respect we felt sad watching because as some have shared-it is a dark & tragic film. Yet, we must say that they did a great job portraying the kind of road couples "can" go down in any scenario, not just traditional marriages. The supporting actors as well as the historical settings are very well done. There is a strong political statement in the film that watchers will either agree with or not...& this bugged us both, but - so be it - this is Hollywood. Either way, fine performances.