Indie Gems: Pieces of April

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Happy Thanksgiving-sort of
 
Pieces of April will forever be known as "that only film Katie Holmes was good in" for some. While I absolutely agree with that statement, this little film is far more than that.
 
Scatter-brained April (Holmes) and her boyfriend Bobby (Derek Luke) are planning to have April's estranged family over for Thanksgiving dinner. Her mother, Joy (Patricia Clarkson) is terminally ill. They've always had a rocky relationship. Coming with her is father Jim, (Oliver Platt) goody two shoes little sister Beth, (Alison Pill) brother Timmy (John Gallagher Jr.) and grandma Dottie. (Alice Drummond) The film is split between the family's long road trip and April's beat up apartment complex where she's forced to go door to door to cook her turkey after her stove breaks.
 
It's funny to me to see Pill and Gallagher as brother and sister after seeing them as potential love interests in The Newsroom. Patricia Clarkson is the real star of this film though. You can see the conflicts on her face. She's sarcastic, rude, but you can tell deep down that she has a heart and no matter how much she pretends to hate going to see April, she still loves her little girl deep down. Even if I hate to admit it, Holmes is good here too. It's easy to see why she's the black sheep of her family, but she's got a good heart.
 
Grade: A-
 
Memorable Quote: "Are you Wayne? Wayne with the new stove?" - April (Katie Holmes)

Comments

  1. AnonymousNovember 15, 2013 at 10:56 AM

    I kind of love this movie. The ENTIRE cast is great, including Holmes (I actually think she's talented but misguided as of late). Such a beautiful little film. Great write up!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dan O.November 15, 2013 at 2:40 PM

    Good review Brittani. This one took me by total surprise. The emotional connection with these characters didn't fully come into play, all until that final ending-sequence where I was surprisingly tearing-up.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Brittani BurnhamNovember 16, 2013 at 7:06 AM

      Yeah, that final scene was pretty beautiful. Especially when April and her mother hugged.

      Delete
  3. UnknownNovember 16, 2013 at 12:58 AM

    Very good Review. Yes I agree that Patricia Clarkson is the real star of the story,but Katie Holmes does very well in this

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousNovember 16, 2013 at 6:26 AM

    I don't know if I've even seen Katie Holmes in a film before… hmm. Sounds great, though, if I even stumble on this in the DVD section, I'll give it a watch.

    ReplyDelete
  5. s.November 17, 2013 at 4:29 AM

    I've never seen this one but I do love Clarkson so I need to check it out!

    ReplyDelete
  6. JoshNovember 20, 2013 at 6:46 PM

    Holmes was great in the film, but I agree that Clarkson totally steals it. I really need to rewatch it.

    ReplyDelete

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