As many reviewers have said, the acting is great in this movie. I even thought the actor playing the younger brother did a good job, given he was limited in what was mostly a supportive role. I have a new-found respect for Adam Scott's talents, as he nailed a very complex character here.
This is a raw, somewhat painful movie to watch. I actually skipped over the middle act because I was concerned about how they were going to handle the storyline. My fears were somewhat assuaged and I went back to watch it chronologically.
A history of betrayal in the family has estranged son from father, and a more recent betrayal has driven the son (Adam's character) to what appears to be the brink of sanity. Half the time his behaviour towards his younger brother's girlfriend is misogynistic and frankly inexcusable. Then he's spends just as much screen time breaking down emotionally and apologizing. It's infuriating because this kind of damaging emotional instability - extreme anger-induced verbal/other abuse towards women followed by remorse - is not exactly rare in our society. However, I think they did a reasonable job of not glossing over his bullshit behaviour and Emma is portrayed as having some fortitude in the face of his erraticness. Yes, annoyingly, she gradually becomes attracted to him (or more likely to his backstory as the black sheep of the family), but they make it clear in a more understated way that she has her own damaged psyche to contend with. Brittany Snow nailed her character as well I think, in a nicely nuanced performance.
The movie's final betrayal serves as a catalyst to some form of new awareness or growth for most of the main characters Thankfully the realistic tone of the movie held firm and they didn't resort to some rom-com happy ending, as I would have had to literally vomit if that was the case.
This is a raw, somewhat painful movie to watch. I actually skipped over the middle act because I was concerned about how they were going to handle the storyline. My fears were somewhat assuaged and I went back to watch it chronologically.
A history of betrayal in the family has estranged son from father, and a more recent betrayal has driven the son (Adam's character) to what appears to be the brink of sanity. Half the time his behaviour towards his younger brother's girlfriend is misogynistic and frankly inexcusable. Then he's spends just as much screen time breaking down emotionally and apologizing. It's infuriating because this kind of damaging emotional instability - extreme anger-induced verbal/other abuse towards women followed by remorse - is not exactly rare in our society. However, I think they did a reasonable job of not glossing over his bullshit behaviour and Emma is portrayed as having some fortitude in the face of his erraticness. Yes, annoyingly, she gradually becomes attracted to him (or more likely to his backstory as the black sheep of the family), but they make it clear in a more understated way that she has her own damaged psyche to contend with. Brittany Snow nailed her character as well I think, in a nicely nuanced performance.
The movie's final betrayal serves as a catalyst to some form of new awareness or growth for most of the main characters Thankfully the realistic tone of the movie held firm and they didn't resort to some rom-com happy ending, as I would have had to literally vomit if that was the case.