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CHICAGO – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com appears on “The Morning Mess” with Dan Baker on WBGR-FM (Monroe, Wisconsin) on March 21st, 2024, reviewing the new streaming series “Manhunt” – based on the bestseller by James L. Swanson – currently streaming on Apple TV+.
The Beauty and the Ugliness of Loss in ‘The Boys Are Back’
Submitted by BrianTT on October 5, 2009 - 7:31am
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Continuing reading for Emily Riemer’s full “The Boys Are Back” review.
‘The Boys Are Back’ opened in limited release on September 25th, 2009 and stars Clive Owen, Nicholas McAnulty, George MacKay and Laura Fraser. The film opened in Chicago on October 2nd, 2009 and expands across the country next week, October 9th. It’s directed by Scott Hicks, with a screenplay by Allan Cubitt based on a memoir by Simon Carr. It is rated PG-13.
The Boys Are Back.
Photo credit: Miramax
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 Rating: 4.5/5.0 |
ATLANTA – Sometimes human tragedy hits dramatically, but other times it subtly, imperceptibly, alters the intrinsic fibers of everyday life in undetectable ways. That is the premise behind Scott Hicks’ film “The Boys Are Back.” It is the story not of death, but of the strategy human beings devise to cope, to defend and to protect themselves against pain and loss. And though it sometimes reveals the distasteful, ugly ways in which people interact while coping with tragedy, it is also a beautifully shot and truthful portrayal of human frailties and their reactions to loss.
At the center of one family’s tragedy is a father named Joe (Clive Owen). He is a parent to two sons, each one from a different marriage – a British expatriate who followed his pregnant mistress to Australia where he divorced his British first wife, married the mistress Katy, and made a fresh start with his new family.
| Read Emily Riemer’s full review of “The Boys Are Back” in our reviews section. |
This life seems to be going well until Katy (Laura Fraser) suddenly falls ill with end-stage cancer. Mere minutes into “The Boys Are Back,” Katy has died a difficult, painful death, and a man who was emotionally flawed and fairly stunted before must now handle an overwhelming loss and the nurturing and physical care of a small child.
As Joe, Owen gives a lithe and subtle performance. His eyes flash a contained but smoldering anger, and he effectively conveys Joe’s lack of affect and sporadic emotional disconnect from his young son Artie (Nicholas McAnulty). Owen’s ability to navigate Joe’s gamut of emotions is encapsulated in the scene in which he calls his older son Harry (George MacKay) in England to tell him of Katy’s death. On the phone, he silently breaks down, a camera close-up revealing tears streaming down his wrenched face, but when Harry asks if he is all right, he emits a forceful, deadpan, “Yeah. Of course.” Then he tells him he loves him, calls him sweetheart, and says good-bye, walking the tightrope of Joe’s ambivalence delicately but clearly.
Continuing reading for Emily Riemer’s full “The Boys Are Back” review.The Boys Are Back.
Photo credit: Miramax
