'Pieces of April' is a nice little thanksgiving film that ends before it is over, but by doing that it makes sure the film has exactly the length it should have. Eighty minutes that is. If I explain my first remark I might spoil things. About the second: The film shows three little stories that take place on the same time for about five hours or so. The length this feature film has makes sure none of them becomes boring although near the end we start thinking that it might.
The first story shows April (Katie Holmes) who lives with her boyfriend Bobby (Derek Luke), a nice black guy. They get up early and start preparing a thanksgiving dinner, apparently for April's family she has not seen in a long time. Bobby has to leave and do something which provides the second story, which is a single story but handled in a few scenes. In the first story April's oven stops working so she hopes on nice people in her building.
The third story, the second main story, shows April's family. We meet her father Jim (Oliver Burns), her mother Joy (Patricia Clarkson) who is dying of cancer, grandma Dottie (Alice Drummond) who is not totally healthy anymore, her brother Timmy (John Gallagher Jr.) and sister Beth (Alison Pill). The only one who sort of wants to see his daughter is Jim. His dying mother wants to go the least of all, we learn from her dry humor. They do not wish to see April because her past is not very spotless.
This film works because it is genuinely funny and warm. We can guess where the story will go, but supporting characters in April's building and especially Joy and grandma with their remarks give us some surprises. Most of those surprises bring a great deal of humor with them. Although it is fun we sort of get the feeling it has to end soon or it will become boring. The funny moments become more of the same and meeting more different people would turn April's building into a soap opera set. Fortunately it does end exactly when we start to feel this way, but it is so sudden it gives us the feeling of an unfinished film. Since it has, at least story-wise, the right ending that does not really matter but I do think there were other, better, possibilities there.
The first story shows April (Katie Holmes) who lives with her boyfriend Bobby (Derek Luke), a nice black guy. They get up early and start preparing a thanksgiving dinner, apparently for April's family she has not seen in a long time. Bobby has to leave and do something which provides the second story, which is a single story but handled in a few scenes. In the first story April's oven stops working so she hopes on nice people in her building.
The third story, the second main story, shows April's family. We meet her father Jim (Oliver Burns), her mother Joy (Patricia Clarkson) who is dying of cancer, grandma Dottie (Alice Drummond) who is not totally healthy anymore, her brother Timmy (John Gallagher Jr.) and sister Beth (Alison Pill). The only one who sort of wants to see his daughter is Jim. His dying mother wants to go the least of all, we learn from her dry humor. They do not wish to see April because her past is not very spotless.
This film works because it is genuinely funny and warm. We can guess where the story will go, but supporting characters in April's building and especially Joy and grandma with their remarks give us some surprises. Most of those surprises bring a great deal of humor with them. Although it is fun we sort of get the feeling it has to end soon or it will become boring. The funny moments become more of the same and meeting more different people would turn April's building into a soap opera set. Fortunately it does end exactly when we start to feel this way, but it is so sudden it gives us the feeling of an unfinished film. Since it has, at least story-wise, the right ending that does not really matter but I do think there were other, better, possibilities there.