Expected more

If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

Duncan Shorter (Joshua Jackson) is a struggling 25 year old in Minnesota, and gets fired from yet another job. He lets his married brother Jacob and Jacob's mistress use his apartment. He visits his grandfather Ronald Shorter (Donald Sutherland) who is struggling with Parkinson's, and his grandmother Ruth (Louise Fletcher). His visiting nurse Kate (Juliette Lewis) fears Alzheimer's. Duncan falls for Kate. He gets a handyman job at his grandparents' retirement apartment. He is still haunted by his father's death 10 years ago.The story with Duncan and Kate is rather standard rom-com. It's not the highest comedy but the two leads are solid performers. They are perfectly fine with some fun moments. It's nothing special. Sutherland is the more interesting part of this movie and the more complicated part. His relationship with Duncan holds far more compelling drama. Concentrating on that would obviously change the tone of the movie. It's a choice to make this special but also poses specific dangers. At least, it would be unique.

I saw this at the West Los Angeles screening last September. Since I was feeling a little homesick for Minneapolis, I decided to take a flyer and shell out $10 to see it. My expectations weren't that high since Mr. Dawson's Creek, Joshua Jackson, was one of the leads.Little did I realize that Joshua Jackson would be brilliant in this movie. As good as Joshua Jackson performed, Donald Sutherland turned in one of the best performances by any actor. This movie doesn't beat you over the head with a stick, it's much more subtle than the current schlock that passes for cinema these days! Juliette Lewis plays against type, but does it so well. You actually care about the characters. This is one of the best crafted films of 2006! The only flaw I see in this movie is the lack of distribution. I've told my friends across the country that this is a "must see" movie and only those in MN have been fortunate enough to see it. There are so few well made films, something needs to be done to increase Aurora's exposure!

I had the pleasure of viewing this movie just tonight, and I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised. First of all, the acting was amazing. I have never been as impressed and blown away with Donald Sutherland's acting as I was after seeing his performance. This role and his role in Ordinary People have to be his two best roles that I have seen. His performance as an aging grandfather with Parkinson's and ongoing dementia was accurate, heartbreaking and hilarious all at the same time. If I had any influence in the industry, I would try to vouch for him getting at least an Oscar nomination, if not the award itself. Everyone in the movie is amazing as well. It's not often that you see a movie where you forget that you are watching movie stars but actually see the characters in the story, but this film achieved that, and no small feat considering the numerous well known actors in it. I highly recommend the film.

I had never seen Joshua Jackson before. What a talent, and what a nice surprise. His is a masterful performance of a young man turning the corner from being mired in his thinking to one who awakens before our eyes. This cast is absolutely perfect, from Juliette Lewis' free spirit, to Louise Fletcher's supportive, but somewhat helpless grandmother, to an absolute, don't-miss-this Oscar performance by Donald Sutherland as the aging grandfather whose illness is getting the best of him. Roger Ebert & Richard Roeper have talked about their hope Sutherland gets another good role, because he's such a fine actor. This is the role, this is the year, and I hope the world discovers this little gem of a movie in the glut of big studio releases and marketing. It's rated R for language, but it's barely an R. Because of the discussion of suicide, it's really just a PG-13. Find this movie. You'll have to look for it, because it's being released in the small indie art house market. It should be in every multiplex in America.