I just re-watched this one last night and it’s just a fantastic film. Great, believable characters, impressive acting throughout, and a phenomenal score/soundtrack. Some of the best moments between characters I can remember.A couple of my favorites are Alan Arkin’s character when he tells Greg Kinnear he’s proud of him. It comes across as so sincere, especially because he made that character feel so real with the tough, blunt, NYC old guy attitude. You know he doesn’t bother saying things unless he means them- good or bad,Another is Toni Collette telling the young girl that her grandpa is dead. I’ve never been a parent and never will, but her performance at the hospital is haunting in its grace. The whole cast just does a great job, from Steve Carrell playing a man almost completely devoid of hope, to Paul Dano being frustrated with his family, all the way to the doctor who breaks it to the family that their grandfather is dead. Abigail Breslin does a fantastic job being naive and full of joy, including the part at the end where she bravely decides to do her rehearsed dance scene after much trepidation from her brother and father.Probably the funniest scenes in my opinion are when they get pulled over, and the horn goes on the fritz. I can’t tell you how hard I laughed at that, because the horn itself just has this mocking and absurd sound, which totally undercuts the sincerity of the actors. Dean Norris goes from understanding to a bit disgusted right away, and Bryan Cranston plays his character in a way that you never really know if he actually believed in Kinnear’s book idea or if he’s just taking advantage of him.The last scene I truly enjoyed the most, because you realize that dance is the grandfather’s way of trolling pageants, even though he wasn’t there to see it. Having a 6-year old dance to “Super freak” points out just how fucking creepy those things are, and it’s the chef’s kiss of satire. The audience member who gives a standing ovation the end was just a cherry on top of the over-sexualized mocking of pageant culture.Kudos to everyone involved in making this movie. It’s not a light movie in many ways, but the way they deal with such difficult moments is very human. via /r/movies https://ift.tt/nBP5cNM
