Patman

Upon hearing decent reviews for "Pieces of April", I went and saw it yesterday.

It features a dysfunctional family embarking on a road trip to have Thanksgiving at the eldest daughter, April (played by Katie Holmes), who was a hellion in her youth, and the meal is met with dreaded intrepidation by most of her family (except for her father, played by Oliver Pratt). Her mother (a nice turn by Patricia Clarkson) is a piece of work herself, but she's got reason to be.

There's some touching moments in the film, and some bits that just don't work (like the one with Sean Hayes as a strange neighbor). The wrap-up to the whole day of events has a decent synchronistic feel to it, and it feels somewhat natural in development on some levels, while on others, it seemed forced.

The camerawork can be distracting because it has an amatuerish feel to it (out of focus shots, lack of steady-cam, etc).

Overall, it's okay, but I'd recommend it as a rental.

I give it 2.5 stars, or a grade of C+.

MrN

This film has been playing seemingly forever at my local arthouse chain and I've been debating going to see it sometime.

Upon reading your review, I'm still undecided. Perhaps if I'm really bored and in the theatre's neighborhood...

Copenhagen

I watched this last night and I thought it was pretty enjoyable. I agree with Patmanat the parts with Sean Hayes seemed out of place and the camerwork does look like amatuerish, but I think the camera work really fit in with the movie for me. I think my favorite past was when she was trying to explain the concept of Thanksgiving to the Asian neighbors.