Review: The Kids Are Alright

Quirky indie comedies about dysfunctional families are quite common these days, a lot of them pop around awards time. However, while it has been tipped for awards glory, The Kids Are Alright isn't as obvious in its quirkiness as some of those other films and instead focuses on relationships and what happens when a couple has been together for years and their children have grown up. It just happens in this case that the couple are both women Nic and Jules, played respectively by Annette Bening and Julianne Moore, despite this they seem to be a fairly normal couple. Nic and Jules each carried one of their respective children both using the same sperm donor who is sought out by their children Joni and Laser, when the former turns 18. The rest of the film sees how the family unit is rocked by Paul's arrival, the uptight Nic is wary of chilled out restraunter Paul's effect on the kids especially Joni who is about to go off to college. Jules meanwhile, who has never settled on a career, finds herself drawn to Paul as they have a lot in common and later he hires hre on a gardening project. Through his relationship with Paul, Laser is able to stand up to his idiotic friend while Joni is able to stand-up to Nic's authority. The whole thing interweaves between the various relationships as things are changed forever because of Paul's introduction into the family.

The main thing that The Kids Are Alright has going for it is its ensemble cast. Mak Ruffalo's performance is probably his best since his star making turn in You Can Count On Me. His Paul is laid back and has alternative views but when he meets Nic and Jules his life changes and he starts to experience responsibility and love for what may possibly be the first time. Mia Wasikowska and Josh Hutcherson are great as Joni and Laser, the former gives a subtle performance as a teenager embarking on a new stage of her life while the latter demonstrates the struggles of a teenage boy growing up with two mums. Julianne Moore makes Jules almost childlike, she almost comes across as spoilt and attention-seeking. This is evident in one scene where Nic and Paul finally start to bond the camera pans to Jules face to see her almost upset that she may have to share her new friend Paul with her partner. Moore always inhabits her roles fully and this is no difference however this is mainly Annette Bening's film. Every scene that she appears in she dominates as she makes Nic a hard character obsessed with rules and proper manners but at the same time always wanting to show that she is forward-thinking. But Benning also shows Nic's soft side during a scene in a bathroom in which everything changes in her relationship with Jules.

It is also admirable that the film never lingers on the fact that these are two women raising children. Instead, and quite rightly, we are told that it is perfectly normal for these two women to raise children together and apart from Paul's line 'I love lesbians' the sexuality of the characters is never raised. The film is mainly about people questioning about how they see themselves Paul likes to think of himself as unattatched and happily so, Jules likes to think herself as a free-spirit and Nic as a woman with alternative views however through their interaction with each other their perceptions change. The whole thing is expertly directed and co-written by Lisa Cholodenko who breathes real life into her character and the film is also incredibly well-shot. My only qualm is that the sub-plot involving Joni and her unrequited love for a male friend is never fully resolved. Overall though this isn't overly-quirky but at the same time is funny and heart-warming with an ending that isn't cliched or overly sentimental.