How sad is this?

Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

The story line has been done many times before but James Gandolfini always brings more to the table than most other actors can and this is no exception. It does not take the audience long to realize that Doug Riley (played by James Gandolfini) and his wife Lois Riley (played by Melissa Leo) have been grieving for a few years over the loss of their daughters life.Doug seems to be a lost soul and a shell of the man he once was before his daughter died. Lois is struggling with her depression and coping with pills and hiding in her home 24 hours a day. Doug is on his way to New Orleans for a business convention when he innocently runs in to a teenage stripper/prostitute named Molly/Allison (played by Kristen Stewart).Doug takes it upon himself to stick around New Orleans after the convention comes to a close and see if he can help Molly realize that her way of life can be changed. Doug is not looking for anything in return, only redemption for losing his daughter. Once Doug's wife gets the phone call from Doug that he is staying in New Orleans for awhile she is determined to break her self imposed entrapment and so Lois begins her long journey from her confined home in Indianapolis to New Orleans to meet Doug and the person who appears to be keeping Doug in New Orleans.The three main characters do meet and there is no end of drama with young Molly still trying to make a living as a stripper/prostitute and living in a run down row house owned by a perverted landlord. Eventually Doug and Lois realize that they are at a crossroad with Molly and that they have to let go of their own ideals for Molly and accept the fact that Molly/Allison needs to come to her own life decisions.Doug eventually gets that dreaded phone call from Molly a few weeks later and as I don't like to give away the ending I can say that Doug did have some level of influence on Molly and she thanks Doug for his and Lois's love and support. If there were more men and women like the Rileys, the world would in fact be a much more caring and loving place to live and grow.Gandolfini's screen appearances are limited due to his untimely and premature death in 2013 by a heart attack. He commands the big screen and so this is a picture worth seeing if for nothing other than to see a man in turmoil cope with his grief for his daughter by how he goes about helping others. I rate the film a strong 6 out of 10.

I'm really mad for those who gave me good recommendations about this film. It's bad in many aspects. For instance, it sounds inaccurate to portray a stripper who works also as a hooker; the story should allow spectator to notice that being a stripper doesn't necessarily mean you're also a hooker. Also, Mr. Riley felt unhappy for some reason, and he decides he wants to talk to someone. Where does he go to? To a psychologist, maybe? To a friend's house, who knows? NO! He goes to a strip club! Of course, you need to talk to somebody and you go meet a stripper, because that's what they're paid for! For some odd reason, she tries to hook up with him a few times, and he doesn't accept because... er, I don't really remember. The fact is that Mr. Riley assumed he cheated on his wife with at least two different girls, and when he goes to a strip club, he decides not to? That doesn't sound particularly plausible. And when Mr. Doug calls his wife to tell her he's temporarily moving out... She realizes he's cheating on her, and what does she do? She says "I know I've been... (a bad wife maybe)?", practically forgiving him to be cheating on her, because it was her fault. I mean, come on! Until the point I paid any attention-- I turned it off around the first hour--, we had no clue why Doug was so unfaithful with his wife. The plot was boring, implausible, slow-paced and without any perspective. Directing was just lifeless. I'm only giving it 3 stars in respect of the actors involved in this, since they weren't that bad. Weak movie, no wonder why it flopped!

There is something about the atmosphere this film creates in its opening ten minutes or so. In these minutes we are treated to skillful acting from Gandolfini, Davis, Stewart and Leo which creates atmosphere, starts us thinking about the characters, and slightly depresses us as to the atmosphere and content of contemporary society. That by the end of the film we are more understanding is an incredible compliment to this film and how it is so intuitively and beautifully made.The script is wonderfully sharp, almost like a laser in places, and the pace is just like reading a poem with a constant meter. The cinematography is eerily in tune with everything else about this film, and the screenplay constantly makes us think and empathise with what we see. The music bubbles along in a hypnotic echo warning us not to run too fast or we will miss things.The acting is of such high quality throughout it would be wrong to pick out anyone for special mention and this is as true of the cameos as it is for everyone else. As films go it is as perfect as you can get. But don't take my word for it, just go and see it and spend time watching that opening sequence over and over again. This is story telling at its best.

Watching this film is like listening to Adele sing the Happy Birthday Song. It's the most beautiful version of something you've seen a billion times before. James Gandolfini, Kristin Stewart and Melissa Leo exquisitely perform a story that doesn't have a single original or unexpected moment from its opening scene to the closing credits. The direction of Jake Scott is a little manufactured at times but never gets in the way, letting you enjoy two modern masters and a young woman who is sure as hell a lot more than "that girl in the sparkly vampire movies".Doug and Lois Riley (James Gandolfini and Melissa Leo) are a 50something married couple in Indianapolis who are on the precipice of personal disaster. Doug is sleeping with a waffle house waitress and Lois is frozen in place, unable to even leave her home. They've never recovered from the death of their teenage daughter. Then Doug travels to New Orleans for a business convention and meets Mallory (Kristin Stewart), a teenager stripper/hooker who's trapped in a world of squalor and misery that she can't even imagine escaping. Doug is drawn into that world, selling his business and abandoning Lois to try and pull Mallory out of the gutter. The shock of Doug's decision is enough to force Lois out of stasis and she drives down to The Big Easy, only to fall in love with Mallory as well. But a 15 year old girl who's seen and lived the worst of the streets can't be fixed that easily.Now, there's not one surprising scene or line of dialog in Welcome to the Rileys and the concept of a woman so wounded by the loss of a child that she can't step outside her front door is treated a bit too comedically. That's about all I can find wrong with this motion picture and it fades to insignificance compared to all that's right with it.The three leads here are as close to perfect as any actor can get. If there's anything lacking in these roles, it's entirely due to how they're written and not at all how they're performed. Stewart is absolutely dead on in her portrayal of a girl who doesn't know the right way to live and bristles at anyone who tries to teach her. Gandolfini's stoicism and determination flows through a man who thinks he's found purpose again. Leo's portrayal of the most damaged person in the story transforming into the strongest is effortlessly believable. And while Ken Hixon's script does nothing new, he handles the integration of Lois into Doug and Mallory's world with great intelligence. Lois is a sharp and fast disruption to that relationship but Hixon makes you see that such a disruption was needed to let both Doug and Mallory move on to a healthier place in their lives. Director Scott also deserves credit for sustaining a consistency of emotion and behavior instead of jerking the characters in whatever direction the story moves.Gandolfini and Leo have already made their bones in the acting world but with Welcome to the Rileys and The Yellow Handkerchief, Stewart has laid claim to being THE actress to watch in her generation. I hope she can fulfill that promise and I hope I can see a lot more films as good as this one.