Patrick Sun

The trailer to this film makes it out to be a light, heartwarming film filled with holiday good cheer and laughter. It's a bit darker than that, and the laughs are toned down in relation to the storytelling.

I didn't think the first act wasn't all that great of a set-up for the film (and the plot development becomes very predictable), but as it rolls forward, the film picks up steam, and it becomes a bittersweet film highlighting the bonds of family, love and friendship.

I give it 2.75 stars, or a grade of B-.

"I am a leaf on the wind, watch how I soar!"
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Rakesh.S

sounds like cheaper by the dozen 1

Adam_S

Loved the film, I consider it a new holiday classic, wish there was an airplane edition without the two 'cherry popping' lines because everything else in the PG13 is fine even for a ten year old, but talk about having an uncomfortable explanation about that line.

Heh, my sister is seventeen, saw this with her gal pals, and one of her friends (16) had no idea what it referred to, talk about an uncomfortable (if amusing) moment of explanation.

An utterly marvelous film, wonderful family dynamic, and although predictable, it's predictable in the delightful way that holiday movies and romantic comedies SHOULD be predictable. So I loved the script, thought the performances were excellent, I laughed I cried I want to see it again.

One of the year's best for me.

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Craig S

It's NOTHING like the Steve Martin CbtD films at all.

I'm with Adam, I think it's a new holiday classic. True, it's not particularly groundbreaking, but it is effortlessly funny & touching. Aspects that in other films would be hammered at you are nicely understated here, and the film is all the better for it.

Top-notch acting from the entire cast, who create this group of characters who you can't help but love by the film's end. Standouts are Sarah Jessica Parker as the uptight girlfriend, Luke Wilson as the laidback son, Craig T. Nelson (who has NEVER been better), and Diane Keaton as the Mom. She has a brief, wordless solo scene in the final act which is just heartbreaking, again because it is so beautifully underplayed.

Wonderful, wonderful stuff, and HIGHLY recommended. Don't let this one pass you by.

Seth Paxton

The Family Stone
8 of 10

Generally this is more like Terms of Endearment than anything. Good laughs, but its also a serious family drama in which the main theme is about a mother passing on the ability to be true to oneself and happy to her group of children. That is the actual "family stone" here, not the ring itself.

So you spend the film with this plotline of a son bringing home his uptight fiancee and all the troubles she has with his family, but its really about each of her children being true to their own needs and her ability to realize that they will be okay without her (you find out early on that she is ill).

In that way its also got the Stepmom thing going a tiny bit, but this is much less manipulitive and very well directed. Lots of good acting efforts throughout the film, especially Keaton who could seriously warrant a S. Actress nom from it. Obviously SJ Parker already has a GG actress nomination for the film.

It's not that you haven't sort of seen this stuff before, just that its being done very well which is a lot more rare. It's an easy watch and emotionally rewarding.

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