Movie Review: The Kids Are Alright
Life is pretty normal for a lesbian couple raising their two teenage children who were conceived by artificial insemination from a donor father. When the donor father enters the picture the harmony of this tight knit family starts to unravel as they work through issues in their relationships.
What is refreshing about this movie is its up close look at the life of a committed lesbian couple who have successfully raised two children. The family unit is fascinating due to the well written screenplay and ensemble acting. The exploration of the donor father and his relationship to the family might have been better by simply focusing on how he fit into the family unit, those who have seen the movie will no doubt know what I mean. Julianne Moore and Annette Bening are both excellent here. I’ve always admired the acting skill of Julianne Moore, and I believe this is the best performance of Annette Bening’s career. Mark Ruffalo is solid as the donor father, and Mia Wasikowska and Josh Hutcherson are well cast as the teenage children, particularly Mia Wasikowska. Wasikowska is an actress to watch, if you haven’t seen her performances in In Treatment Season 1 or Tim Burton’s Alice Alice in Wonderland you need to, Wasikowska has a talent level that may someday equal the skill level of Meryl Streep.
The Kids Are Alright is touching, gut wrenching, and well acted, it is a movie you should include on your must see list.
2010. Directed by Lisa Cholodenko. Starring Julianne Moore, Annette Bening, Mark Ruffalo, Mia Wasikowska, and Josh Hutcherson.
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