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DiscountDelight - Junebug
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List Price: $26.96
Our Price: $14.26
Your Save: $ 12.70 ( 47% )
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
Directed By: Phil Morrison (II)
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Average Customer Rating:   
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Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Binding: DVD
EAN: 0043396119390
Format: AC-3
ISBN: 1404991425
Label: Sony Pictures
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: Sony Pictures
Region Code: 99
Release Date: 2006-01-17
Running Time: 106
Studio: Sony Pictures
Theatrical Release Date: 2005
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: Refreshingly unadorned, honest filmmaking
Comment: I was a little wary of this film going in. Any film that basically sends a Yankee woman down South can easily turn in to something that ridicules Southerners - and not only did this film take place in the South, it came right here to my own Tar Heel backyard. Starting things off with some footage of the state's annual hollerin' contest seemed a bad omen, but - much to my delight (and relief) - I found nothing to really complain about here. Sure, there are some stereotypes in the mix - but these are only on the surface (with the exception of the painter character) and Junebug goes far beyond skin deep. It's an unusual film, to say the least. Refreshingly different, this film brings together a wonderful myriad of public and private, deeply personal moments, allowing the actors to truly become their characters rather than having their characters imposed upon them. Some folks won't enjoy this film at all, I'm sure, finding the silent moments others of us find uncommonly compelling to be - well - boring. This isn't an action film or a comedy or even a drama in the common sense - although there are certainly a number of funny and dramatic moments encompassed in the story. Those who truly appreciate the art of moviemaking, I believe, will find Junebug an uplifting experience. It's worth seeing just for Amy Adams' performance alone - she's utterly fantastic.
Newlyweds George (Alessandro Nivola) and Madeleine (Embeth Davidtz) apparently had a small, private wedding because she has never met his family. When they find themselves traveling to North Carolina in order for Madeleine, an art gallery owner in Chicago, to court a promising folk artist, they naturally swing by to meet the folks. It's quite a family. There's Dad (Scott Wilson), the strong, silent type who spends most of his time in the basement, woodworking and looking for his screwdriver; Mom (Celia Weston), the enigmatic, direct, suspicious mother; Johnny (Benjamin McKenzie), George's moody, taciturn, stand-offish brother; and Johnny's wife Ashley (Amy Adams), who literally lights up the screen with her over-excitable, spontaneous personality (she's also the only major actor in the film to speak anything like a native North Carolinian). Ashley's the type who would drive many a person completely up the wall with her inability to ever stop talking and her immense wonder at everything in the world, but I quite fell in love with her from the very start. It's pretty obvious that part of her behavior is a front for some sadness, even desperation, in her life, and it's not hard to find the source - the uncommunicative Johnny, who seems to want nothing to do with anybody - especially George. Speaking of George, he sort of just disappears early on, leaving his fish-out-of-water wife to tackle all of his relatives on her own.
With no major happenings other than the impending arrival of Ashley's baby and Madeleine's frantic efforts to land the soon-to-be famous folk artist David Wark (Frank Hoyt Taylor), much of the focus is on the interrelationships of the family members, the issues and common bonds that make them a family. Some of the issues boil up to the surface largely because of Madeleine's presence. A look oftentimes says more than an extended scene of dialogue, and we do see some way into the souls of most of these individuals. There's no real sense of cloture at the end, but I suppose that is only natural since there is no real ending to family life itself. Things are always changing, for better or for worst. I certainly wonder what the future holds for these people - those I liked, anyway.
I have not seen The Constant Gardener, but that isn't going to stop me from saying that Amy Adams deserved the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress over Rachel Weisz (and, seemingly, every film body other than the Academy agreed with me). Ashley is as captivating a character as I've come across in a long time, and Adams' performance runs the whole gamut from childlike glee to heart-breaking tragedy.
I would note that Junebug does not really capture the Tar Heel or Southern spirit - although pieces of it are there. I also can't imagine that David Wark's artwork would go over big in the South at all - anyone who draws the thing he draws on Robert E. Lee (and every other character in his War Between the States-themed work) won't be met by many open arms down here.
I only have one minor complaint about this film, and it concerns the director's sense of direction. It was interesting when he sidestepped away from a conversation to show us empty rooms with the muffled conversation continuing in the background, and some of his isolated shots of different little scenes were all well and good, but I think he just took it a bit too far at one point, making it look a little too much like he was just trying to be artsy-fartsy about the whole thing. That's truly a miniscule issue, however - certainly not enough to keep me from giving this refreshingly real film five stars.
Customer Rating:
Summary: A very good, enjoyable movie.
Comment: This movie doesn't have superstar actors, explosions, or a lot of over-the-top drama. It's an efficient movie, in that it goes about its business and achieves its goals in a quiet, no-nonsense manner. Some reviews have characterized this style of the movie as "boring" but personally, I think it has a lot of charm, class, and something not a lot of films possess today - restraint.
Some people don't like this movie because they feel it "plays up to stereotypes." Well, that's a potential problem when doing movies that seek to portray, among other things, "real life" in the country and small towns, because stereotypes are often born out of common experiences and observations people have, and have truth to them. The truth may become distorted, but people may also incorrectly assume that just because something is a stereotype, it is inherently negative or inaccurate.
In any case, at a glance this movie may seem to be full of stereotypical characters, but I believe it does a fine job of getting past that down to the differences that make everyone unique at some level. I don't see many "rednecks" is this movie - David Wark and Johnny could be, everyone else, no.
The story has been outlined numerous times on here, so I'll just get to the heart of the review. Many of the people involved with the making of this film were from the area it was filmed and North Carolina, and they do a fine job of rendering it true, despite the claims others have made about "Hollywood's take." The acting is as good as advertised. Amy Adams gets due credit for her role as Ashley, but perhaps a hair too much credit - let's face it, it is the showiest role in the movie. Alessandro Nivola, who I've liked in everything I've seen him in (from the delightfully tacky "Best Laid Plans" to the rock star in "Laurel Canyon") does a great job of bringing more layering to what may seem like a one-dimensional good guy, George. Embeth Davidtz is given fine opportunities to shine as Madeleine, the Chicago gallery owner who is a little quizzical about these new places and people but otherwise exceedingly good natured and game for anything. Celia Weston is underrated as George and Johnny's mother, Peg. Scott Wilson infuses the father Eugene with a fitting taciturn melancholy. Ben McKenzie did a fine job with Johnny as well.
The movie lack of didacticism was a refreshing change from other celebrated movies of 2005 ("Crash") and indeed I was pleased to see it make several critics' Top 10 lists. This movie is not the likeliest to blow people away, though the entire church scene, the farewell scene betwen George and his mother, the Ashley and George bedside scene, and the Johnny-Ashley phone call/Eugene and Peg walk were all very powerful high points of the movie. Instead, as I touched on earlier, the movie prefers to tell its story with a quiet, reserved elegance and quirky charm, not unlike some of the characters it portrays.
In conclusion, I recommend this movie for anyone who can enjoy a slower-paced movie. Also, I recommend if you enjoyed the movie, to watch it with commentary. If you don't, you'll never learn interesting morsels of information like the looks in the church scene Embeth Davidtz finds particularly compelling, or what astrological sign Amy Adams suggests Ben McKenzie was born under (hint: she's wrong). And that would just be a shame.
Customer Rating:
Summary: "Where would I be if I was a screwdriver?"
Comment: The story opens in Chicago, where ultra-chic gallery owner Madeline (Embeth Davidtz) has just discovered a primitive painter she wants to represent. She and her husband George (Alessandro Nivola) drive down to North Carolina to meet him and then stay with George's family who live nearby. In that house, Mom runs the show, Dad is invisible to everyone, and son Johnny is mad at the world in general and at his very pregnant wife Ashley (Amy Adams) in particular.
This slice-of-life story takes us into the everyday life of the Johnsten family as seen through the eyes of an outsider. Madeline is the fish-out-of-water in Bible-belt country; the most important thing in life to her is her gallery, but slowly her priorities change. Embeth Davidtz is makes a lovely Madeline and Amy Adams easily steals all of her scenes as the sweet and silly Ashley. George's character isn't developed, perhaps to leave more time to get to know his family. They do come across as real people and we come to care about them all. It's a sweet, insightful little story about people who could very well be the family next door, just living their lives. Very enjoyable.
Customer Rating:
Summary: No Missed Steps
Comment: Well, maybe one missed step -- it is a big stretch to imagine that the undiscovered folk artist who becomes the excuse for the "meet the in-laws" visit that is Junebug would ever attract the attention of a serious gallery owner. But I'll excuse Junebug that error because everything else in the movie is superb. The ensemble cast works seamlessly, each drawing out his/her character while not overwhelming any of the others. (Amy Adams was justly nominated for an Oscar, but everyone else in the cast is equally good.) The funny and sad turns of family life ring exactly true. The older wife's adding layers of knowledge, some surprising, about her North Carolina husband and how much he is of where he came are some of Junebug's best touches. A resolution where all three couples come away with a renewed appreciation for each other feels perfectly earned and not forced.
It doesn't shout at you and it never comes close to preaching (in fact it is almost too determinedly low-key), but Junebug has a lot to quietly say about relationships and becoming mature. Thoroughly recommended.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Just Plain Dreary
Comment: This film is grossly over rated. I could not wait to see it and now that I have, I want the time back. Amy Adams is truly delightful and brings the only light to this otherwise dreary and depressing film. Another dysfunctional family piece that ultimately takes us nowhere. I'm not exactly a a happy-go-lucky guy - but compared to these folks, well ... let's just say I would have run off to New York as well.
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Editorial Reviews:
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Junebug spotlights some big fat culture clashes--small town vs. city ways, art-world bohemian vs. church-going folk--yet social commentary never overwhelms a delightful, emotionally rich portrait of family life. When Madeleine (Embeth Davidtz, Schindler's List), a chic art gallery owner from Chicago, meets with an outsider artist in North Carolina she's eager to represent, she and her new husband George (Alessandro Nivola, Laurel Canyon) take a side trip to visit George's family. The visit sends everyone spinning: George's mother (Celia Weston, The Village) doubts the suitability of the marriage; his brother Johnny (Ben McKenzie, The O. C.) quietly seethes at being overshadowed again by his older sibling; and Johnny's very pregnant wife Ashley (Amy Adams, Catch Me If You Can) fixates on Madeleine, seeking in her a companionship that she can't find in her normal life. Junebug's unexpected rhythms slowly and subtly tease out the past; few movies are as eloquent about the mysteries of family--the hidden rules and resentments, the shifting alliances, the emotional pushes and pulls. Adams' justly praised performance lights up every scene she's in, flowing from comic to heartrending without missing a beat, but the rest of the cast delivers complex and mesmerizing character portraits as well. Junebug will resonate with you long after it's over. --Bret Fetzer
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