Cake

It's not hard to guess why critics and audiences might be turned off by Cake. For the first half, Jennifer Aniston's Claire is snarky with a comeback for everything, manipulates and abuses everyone around her, and indulges in a constant, expensive pity party, and we aren't told why. Once the meat of the story reveals itself, however, Cake is astonishingly clever, delicate, and emotional.

Claire Bennett is the apparent victim of an unexplained accident that left her with chronic pain, a bad attitude, and a trail of broken relationships. After a woman in her pain support group commits suicide, Claire tracks down the woman's husband in a curiously misguided search for answers.

It's not the most unique premise, but screenwriter Patrick Tobin takes the story in unexpected directions, avoiding clichés and handling the subject matter with surprising grace. Director Daniel Barnz could have used some more time in the editing room -- certain side characters and subplots get either more or less time and background than they deserve; why Anna Kendrick's character made it past a rough cut is beyond me -- but in his hands a wordy screenplay becomes visually interesting, moves along at a comfortable pace and is backed by a reflective, unobtrusive score. His direction, and so the movie, really won me over at the climax, where after an hour and a half of sarcasm and one-liners Claire shuts up for once and finally lets the pain in. It's a beautiful, heartrending scene, and the decision to rest Cake on Jennifer Aniston's shoulders was absolutely the right one.

I never thought much of Adriana Barraza in Babel and have only seen her in a couple of other movies but she adds so many personal touches to the role of Claire's maid/cook/home health aide/best friend, she has a real talent for empathy and nuance. Jennifer Aniston, though, is the standout. She clearly reveled in the chance to break away from Rachel and she aced it. There's a tiny moment where Sam Worthington's character tells her she's messed up, and she plays the reaction shot so completely differently from anything she's done in the past - that's when I really started believing her in the role and she only got better from there. She nails her character's dry sense of humor and selfishness, and knows exactly how much charm to give her to make her watchable if not likable. It's a seriously committed, seamless, career-defining performance and she'd be my pick for this year's Oscar.

Verdict: watch it for Jennifer Aniston, walk away pleasantly surprised.

"Thank you for ruining my life. Thank you for ruining Casey's life. Thank you for leaving me in this mess. I hate you so much I can barely breath."

"Way to go Jennifer". For me she's the first one who succeeds in removing the yoke of the sitcom "Friends" and play a character that doesn't remind you of that caricature appearance she played in it. Look at David Schwimmer in "The Iceman" and you see Ross with a totally wrong,fake mustache. Even Matthew Perry's can't hide the characteristics of Chandler in "Numb". Lisa Kudrow tries in "Scandal" to resemble an extremely cool and tough presidential candidate, and yet you expect a crazy remark followed by that wonderful bizarre giggle. And Jennifer Aniston couldn't put the Rachel-type aside in "The Break-Up" and "We're the Millers". But in "Cake" she succeeded in that above all expectations. She delivers a sublime and admirable performance here as Claire Bennett. A scarred woman, physical and psychological. You can see the pain in that tired look and those languid eyes. Even the sneering and cynical humor that she uses, can't cover up the agonies she's suffering from.

After a fatal accident Claire stays behind all alone, with visible and invisible scars. A mangled body patched up afterwards. But she can no longer enjoy life to its full extent. And then there's also the unbearable pain caused by the loss of her son. The result is a bitter, suffering and obnoxious woman abandoned by everyone. The support group prefers her to seek a different kind of help because of her anger issues. The physiotherapist is giving up on her because she has the impression that Claire makes no attempt to rehabilitate. Her husband left her for an unknown reason. Is it because of her moods and harsh remarks? Is there some reproach? Has Claire thrown him out because she doesn't tolerate pity? We can only guess. Similarly, the conditions or cause of the accident are unknown. The only one who sticks to Claire, is her faithful housekeeper, the likable Mexican Silvana.

It's a magnificent portrait of the life course of a presumably wealthy lawyer who slowly but surely sees everything collapsing around her due to the traumatic event. Both her marriage and professional career falters while she's losing herself because of the amount of painkillers and sleeping pills she's taking. What's left is a human wreck without any zest for life. There's only one critical element missing : the courage to finally put it to an end. A backbreaking attitude to life with pent-up grief and eternally recurrent pain as a central issue. You can truly feel the pain. And this all is perfectly played by Jennifer Aniston, who isn't worrying about a perfect makeup and a flashy hairstyle which would be massively hyped afterwards. Her appearance always looks as if she just crawled out of bed after a sleepless night. A face battered by scars, unkempt messed up hair and shabby clothes. A depressed and weary bitchy woman. But one who occasionally brings up funny and sarcastic remarks.

Gradually Claire expresses interest in a participant from her support group who committed suicide and it seems to be her ultimate salvation. Is it the drugs that causes Claire to start hallucinating about Nina (Anna Kendrick) ? Or is her subconscious the reason ? Whether appropriate or not Nina appears and tries to convince her to take that final step. "You don't believe in God...heaven or hell. You don't believe in anything. What about now. Just do it. Don't be such a coward." Claire is intrigued by the character Nina and starts digging in her life. Finally she meets Roy (Sam Worthington), which is the start of a slow recovery. Maybe it's all a bit too much peppered with poignant clichés that'll ensure some sad moments filled with tears, but overall it was a bold and moving portrait of someone torn apart by grief and pain.

Perhaps an Oscar nomination was worthwhile. At least Jennifer Aniston got nominated for a Golden Globe. And by the way well deserved. This "Friends" star delivered a terrific performance as the distraught,addicted-to-pills woman. And speaking of the symbolic meaning of the movie title, this is subtly revealed at the end. Splendid movie. And also because of leaving out sensational footage of the accident. An admirable choice that only strengthens the whole!

More reviews here : http://opinion-as-a-moviefreak.blogspot.be

Jennifer Aniston plays Clare, a woman in chronic pain who becomes curious about a fellow support group member's-Nina's (Anna Kendrick in dream sequences)-suicide. She ends up becoming involved in Nina's husband (Sam Worthington) and his child platonically though she also has a maid who also cares for her even though she doesn't always treat her with the utmost respect. I'll stop there and just say this was quite a departure for Ms. Aniston from her usual comedic persona as she's convincingly quite pathetic in appearance and demeanor. This was not an easy thing to sit through and one gets confused a few times but for all that, I recommend Cake.

An excellent film with an intriguing plot, delivered with a refreshingly down-to-earth storytelling. The buzz about Jennifer Aniston is actually true -- it takes very little time for Aniston to disappear on the screen (and after 15 years of daily Rachel, that in itself is a big achievement). It is someone new we are introduced to in the film, and well... I followed Claire with a mix of annoyance, empathy and curiosity, totally absorbed.

The central story is very good and the big answers are withheld from us in such way that you keep trying and paying attention not to miss anything, because in this film, there is much beauty in the detail. Much to Aniston's credit, it's her performance that grabs you, and the subtlety in how the story is revealed makes our understanding of what's happening to this broken body and soul both moving and endearing. There is humour as well, dark and quick, and it does not let you soak on it for too long. Just as life.

There are some minor "deviations" in the story which don't really add much to the realism of everything else, and it somewhat pulls you back from the emotional depth you had been immersed until then - but those are brief moments.

Small budget, great script, great direction and a solid, moving performance by Aniston (which led me to tears). The remaining cast deserves praise as well, and all comes together really nicel. But it should be said, Aniston has done a brilliant job on this one. She has talent. I would hope Hollywood-land is paying attention and allow us to enjoy more of her in more of these.

Claire Bennett (Jennifer Aniston) suffers from constant pain and struggling with a tragic lost. Her housekeeper Silvana (Adriana Barraza) is her constant and mostly her only helper. She goes to a support group where Nina Collins (Anna Kendrick) just committed suicide. After threatening group leader Annette (Felicity Huffman), she gets Nina's address and befriends Nina's husband Roy Collins (Sam Worthington). She's hooked on pain killers and haunted by Nina's presence.

Aniston does a great job. The story isn't much and there is a need for more tension. I am still not sold on Sam Worthington. His character has potential to give Aniston something to play off of but he provides very little. In contrast, William H. Macy has a juicy scene and goes to town on it. This is a simple story that needs something to elevate the danger. It's relying too much on simply will she or won't she.