What got me into the theater for this one was seeing the trailer. I initially had no idea the lead character was played by Katie Holmes. I have not seen much of her and what I've seen I haven't much liked, including the ridiculous "Dawson's Creek," the success of which positively amazed me.
"Pieces of April" is a low budget indie shot on digital video. Part farce, part made-for-TV holiday movie on how a disfunctional family comes together, this picture works well, despite a rather unbelievable ending. But its success is that you want to believe in the ending, so you do. If only real life were so simple that people who have been at war for years could solve their problems with a good turkey stuffing.
Hats off to writer/director Peter Hedges who did very good job with an obviously limited budget. He also milked about all you can get from a very compact storyline which centers around a formerly drugged out punk girl who decides to cook a traditional Thanksgiving dinner for her estranged family because her mother is dying of cancer.
Full marks to Patricia Clarkson who is good as the mother and Oliver Platt, good, but a little miscast as the father. But this is Katie Holmes movie and she got the ball and ran with it.
While the whole premise might not hold up well under heavy scrutiny, Holmes turns in an excellent performance as the punk daughter facing the very middle class anxiety of having the whole family over for a holiday meal and not having a clue as to how to prepare it.
And while this picture may also be a little too much into "diversity" with good black people and good Asian people and not really many good white folk (all the real villains are white, from Katie's sister to her drug dealing ex-boyfriend), it does make a rather interesting statement. Maybe the people you gather around you should be the people who treat you well. Blood ties are not always the ones that bind.
Anyway, Holmes shines and I will now look forward to her next film with interest. Keep up playing in good indies, Katie, you have a real knack for it.
"Pieces of April" is a low budget indie shot on digital video. Part farce, part made-for-TV holiday movie on how a disfunctional family comes together, this picture works well, despite a rather unbelievable ending. But its success is that you want to believe in the ending, so you do. If only real life were so simple that people who have been at war for years could solve their problems with a good turkey stuffing.
Hats off to writer/director Peter Hedges who did very good job with an obviously limited budget. He also milked about all you can get from a very compact storyline which centers around a formerly drugged out punk girl who decides to cook a traditional Thanksgiving dinner for her estranged family because her mother is dying of cancer.
Full marks to Patricia Clarkson who is good as the mother and Oliver Platt, good, but a little miscast as the father. But this is Katie Holmes movie and she got the ball and ran with it.
While the whole premise might not hold up well under heavy scrutiny, Holmes turns in an excellent performance as the punk daughter facing the very middle class anxiety of having the whole family over for a holiday meal and not having a clue as to how to prepare it.
And while this picture may also be a little too much into "diversity" with good black people and good Asian people and not really many good white folk (all the real villains are white, from Katie's sister to her drug dealing ex-boyfriend), it does make a rather interesting statement. Maybe the people you gather around you should be the people who treat you well. Blood ties are not always the ones that bind.
Anyway, Holmes shines and I will now look forward to her next film with interest. Keep up playing in good indies, Katie, you have a real knack for it.