Running with Scissors (2006)
When you watch the preview for Running with Scissors, you’ll probably laugh at least five times. You’ll think it’s a quirky comedy about an offbeat family in the 1970s, and you’ll want to rent it because of the cast: Alec Baldwin, Annette Bening, Evan Rachel Wood, Jill Clayburgh, Gwyneth Paltrow, Joseph Cross, Joseph Fiennes, Brian Cox, Gabrielle Union, Kristin Chenoweth, and Patrick Wilson. But you need to know before you rent it (or before you pop the DVD in your player) that it’s not as advertised. I watched it all the way through and laughed once or twice. It’s not a quirky comedy; it’s a drama about an extremely dysfunctional family. And since it’s based on the protagonist’s memoir, it’s even more disturbing because it’s based on truth.
In the film, Annette and Alec have a terrible marriage, and their son Joseph Cross suffers the consequences. Annette is the type of person who uses therapy as a weapon, not as a helpful tool, but when she feels she can’t cope with being a mother, she lets her therapist legally adopt her teenaged son. Dr. Brian Cox’s house is also dysfunctional, and he lets his wild children (included his new one) run rampant. If you come from an incredibly dysfunctional family, you might take comfort that someone else can feel your pain, or you might feel better that someone else had it worse than you. I didn’t come from that point of view, so I couldn’t stand this movie. I prefer movies that are either entertaining or serve to teach a greater lesson.
Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, due to drugs, adult and sexual content, I wouldn't let my kids see it.
More Gwyneth Paltrow movies here!
In the film, Annette and Alec have a terrible marriage, and their son Joseph Cross suffers the consequences. Annette is the type of person who uses therapy as a weapon, not as a helpful tool, but when she feels she can’t cope with being a mother, she lets her therapist legally adopt her teenaged son. Dr. Brian Cox’s house is also dysfunctional, and he lets his wild children (included his new one) run rampant. If you come from an incredibly dysfunctional family, you might take comfort that someone else can feel your pain, or you might feel better that someone else had it worse than you. I didn’t come from that point of view, so I couldn’t stand this movie. I prefer movies that are either entertaining or serve to teach a greater lesson.
Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, due to drugs, adult and sexual content, I wouldn't let my kids see it.
More Gwyneth Paltrow movies here!