DVD Review: ‘Everybody’s Fine’ is Second-Rate Hokum With a First-Rate Lead

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CHICAGO – Is there any cinematic prize less prestigious than the Heartland Truly Moving Picture Award? Most of the films honored by this group tend to be simple-minded, cloying and thoroughly manipulative. Any group that names “The Blind Side” as “the best film of 2009” seriously needs its head examined. The Heartland award emblem gracing the DVD box of “Everybody’s Fine” is sure to scare off serious fans of its legendary lead actor.

That’s a shame, since this film contains the best performance from Robert De Niro in many years. It’s honest, richly nuanced and utterly heartbreaking. He never strikes a false note, even as the film takes one phony baloney turn after another. He should get an award simply for leaving the film with his dignity intact. While De Niro conveys depths of emotion with the subtlest nuances, director Kirk Jones loudly declares where he intends the viewer to laugh and cry in every scene. Such an approach usually results in the audience laughing at all the sad moments and weeping at all the allegedly funny ones.

HollywoodChicago.com DVD Rating: 2.5/5.0
DVD Rating: 2.5/5.0

The most tearjerking moment in “Everybody’s Fine” comes before the opening credits, in the form of the recently deceased Miramax logo. It appropriately sets the tone for a story where death constantly looms over the characters, darkening each of their sunny smiles. De Niro plays Frank, a widower eagerly anticipating the homecoming of his four adult children (this role was originally inhabited by Marcello Mastroianni in a 1990 Italian film of the same name). When his kids call to regrettably cancel the visit, Frank embarks on a secret road trip where he’ll visit each of them, setting the stage for predictably heartwarming reunions. Though each of his children insist that they’re “fine,” they’re clearly hiding something. The screenplay has several surprises up its sleeve, and they are all entirely contrived. Why does a film about complex family relationships need to rely on gimmicky twists to elicit emotions?

Robert De Niro and Drew Barrymore play father and daughter in Kirk Jones’s drama Everybody’s Fine.
Robert De Niro and Drew Barrymore play father and daughter in Kirk Jones’s drama Everybody’s Fine.
Photo credit: Miramax Home Entertainment

The story is so simple and tender that it would have greatly benefitted from quietly observant direction and a cast of unknowns. Instead, Frank’s family is a cast of recognizable movie stars who seem all too excited to call De Niro “dad.” Jones made a much better film about men in their twilight years (“Waking Ned Devine”), which also demonstrated his gift for comedy. Yet the attempts at humor in “Everybody’s Fine” just come off as clumsy, usually centering on how out of touch Frank is (he doesn’t know that his suitcase comes with a handle and wheels). There’s an especially cringe-inducing moment early on when Frank proudly surveys his “handiwork” (PVC insulation on telephone wires) out a train window, while having nearby passengers guess what it is (their guesses include “birds” and “rocks”).

Everybody’s Fine was released on DVD on February 23rd, 2010.
Everybody’s Fine was released on DVD on February 23rd, 2010.
Photo credit: Miramax Home Entertainment

These telephone wires clearly emerge as symbolism of the family’s interconnectedness over great distances. This is poignant at first, yet like every good concept in the film, it quickly becomes overused. When one of Frank’s kids runs toward him and morphs into her younger self, the moment is genuinely touching. The third time it happens, it’s overkill. This leads to an embarrassingly inept dream sequence where Frank confronts his kids (awkwardly played by four unexceptional child actors) about their adult problems.

Despite its many flaws, there’s a particular audience that will lap this movie up. Some moviegoers simply don’t care about the manipulations of the plot (no matter how shoddy they are), as long as they empathize with the characters onscreen. De Niro’s performance is so good that it deserves to be seen, and the supporting work from Kate Beckinsale, Sam Rockwell and Drew Barrymore is uniformly strong. Even if you can’t believe the plot, you can believe in the characters that the actors have created. For some viewers, that will be just fine.

“Everybody’s Fine” is presented in its 2.40:1 aspect ratio and accompanied by English and French audio tracks. The scant extras include nine minutes of deleted/extended scenes that mostly consist of meaningful anecdotes from people Frank encounters on his journey. An early flashback to Frank’s conversation with his son David should’ve been kept in the film. There’s also a cute bit where Ben Liff, playing the 94-year-old man who speaks with Frank in the diner, breaks character to tell De Niro, “I think you’re great!” The sole featurette focuses on the making of Paul McCartney’s song, “(I Want To) Come Home,” which ended up snagging the film’s only Oscar nomination. McCartney’s a natural charmer, but the song, like the film, is nothing special.

‘Everybody’s Fine’ is released by Miramax Home Entertainment and stars Robert De Niro, Kate Beckinsale, Sam Rockwell, Drew Barrymore, Lucian Maisel, Damian Young, James Frain and Melissa Leo. It was written and directed by Kirk Jones. It was released on February 23rd, 2010. It is rated PG-13.

HollywoodChicago.com staff writer Matt Fagerholm

By MATT FAGERHOLM
Staff Writer
HollywoodChicago.com
matt@hollywoodchicago.com

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