One Minute Movie Review: Win Win

This is another striking example of the concept of the Dramedy, a moniker I proudly coined myself. Drama and humor are in near perfect balance, where the comedy hits all the marks yet remain soft enough to avoid overreaching or becoming sappy. The story is slow out of the gate, but that is necessary for the set. However, the audiences will find itself thoroughly engrossed by the middle of the film and thoroughly satisfied with the final product. The chemistry between characters is exceptional and totally engaging, by far, one of the best casts of the year. Paul Giamatti is one of the best character actors of our time, but has the uncanny ability to chose the worst films to spotlight his unique talents. This movie is a departure from that, highlighting his extraordinary ability to balance subtle, heartfelt mastery of dialogue with uncomplicated, quite, but moving body language. Amy Ryan is superb as Giamatti's wife and reluctant "foster" mom and Bobby Cannavale lives the role of the troubled yet wise teen. Most independent genre films try to hard and fall definitively short, but this movie escapes those trappings and becomes a human, deeply natural, and wonderfully thought provoking commentary. The only down side was the over use of profanity which could have been entirely absent without any effect on the story. 4 out of 5 Kerenls: a win win, for both those on screen and in the audience.