mattmathews

I saw a really amazing movie last weekend. Rotten Tomatoes describes the movie like this: OSAGE COUNTY tells the dark, hilarious and deeply touching story of the strong-willed women of the Weston family, whose lives have diverged until a family crisis brings them back to the Midwest house they grew up in, and to the dysfunctional woman who raised them.

The movie opens to a husband (Sam Shepherd) explaining things to a new housekeeper...explaining that his wife is a pill addict, and that her antics are "interfering with my drinking." Then in staggers a completely smashed and completely convincing Meryl Streep.

The cast is filled out with too many really, really good actors: Julia Roberts, Chris Cooper, Ewan McGregor, Margo Martindale, Dermot Mulroney, Julianne Nicholson, Juliette Lewis, Benedict Cumberbatch &
Misty Upham.

At first, the audience titters at every mention of pills of alcohol. Even not knowing what was coming, the laughter felt out of place. What was coming was a train wreck. Suicide, child abuse, pedophilia, incest, death, divorce, family secrets, emotional bullying, greed, lying--pretty much every thrill ride possible in a completely dysfunctional family.
The laughter continued, I started laughing myself once I realized that I was watching a movie that was really capturing the effects of alcoholism and addiction on three generations of a family. It wasn't "oh, that's funny" laughter, it was, rather, the kind of laughter you experience after getting off a really scary roller coaster.

I thought the movie was powerful, emotional, and thought provoking. My wife, who has a program, but who still hasn't really dealt with her own childhood spent with a mother addicted to Valium, walked out in tears. Your experience may vary.

Anybody seen it?