part "classic Hollywood movie", part frank exploration of "mental illness"

Rating: 8/10 (3 December 2012)

In some ways, this film fits the definition of a "classic Hollywood film" from my textbook. There's the subtext of a partially hidden heterosexual romance. There's a bit of character growth in the form of an "awakening". Nothing really horrible happens. There are moments both of comedy and of tension, but nothing lasts too long. There are deadlines. It's even the case that the plot is set in motion by a "quest" which remains present throughout the movie and appears to tie everything together, but in fact doesn't really matter all that much (sounds like a "MacGuffin" to me:-).
At the same time there are some elements that are unique. Betcha can't name another movie where the various foibles of sports fans are a central motif. Or one that keeps coming back to not-quite-legal sports gambling. Or that covers dance in some detail, but integrates it into the story so seamlessly that it never seems to be more than a throw-away.
And it was refreshing to see a movie set believably in a lower-middle-class ethos. The decor (both wallpaper and furnishings) looked like something out of a museum. The house was too small, so the "attic" had been "converted" into a bedroom. And cars weren't the latest model.
The movie was sufficiently formulaic that I could figure out what was going to happen next. But it didn't matter. Quirky situations and character development mattered a lot more than the broad plot points.
What stood out the most though was the movie's frank and detailed description of the reality of "mental illness". The line between "normal" and "crazy" is shown in many ways to be much less distinct than our stereotype. A son gets thrown into a mental hospital for beating somebody up; his father gets banned from the stadium for too many fights; are they really that different? Is there some inheritance of mental traits going on here? Are all the superstitions around sports games (aligning remote controls a certain way, holding a certain napkin in one's hand) "just normal", or are they "truly odd", or do they suggest the beginnings of a mental imbalance? The scene where the father holds a fistful of several tens of envelopes, yet "knows" that _one_ is missing, at least illustrates OCD and may even remind one of "Rain Main". The same person that's a sober therapist in an office weekdays may have half their face painted and be cheering wildly for their team on weekends.
Characters react most strongly -often in borderline "socially unacceptable" ways- to truly awful things happening (sudden infidelity, unexpected death, lifestyle-threatening financial losses, threat of incarceration); some are called "crazy" while others are just "stressed"; yet in all cases the bad behavior had a real and understandable reason behind it. Family and community do "risky" things that don't always seem reasonable and don't always work out.
Although not exactly right (I certainly wouldn't want this to be a "training film" for mental health professionals), this movie is a lot more understanding and probing of "craziness" than most others.