A Estranha Vida de Timothy Green

The film made me feel good and it made me laugh and there was some nice performances and a wonderful idea which they failed to develop and instead took the easy route with lazy writing and simplistic direction.

There were points where I was so invested in the story that I became angry and shouted at the screen for such obvious plot holes and dumb writing. As a fan of the director I thought he failed to bring his A game to this project and basically sold out on dealing with the more difficult questions which would inevitably arise from the complicated subject of child rearing and adoption and relationships etc. The film instead choose to be a whimsical fairy tale employing obvious tracts to jerk a tear from you.

The film could have been so much more if it did not seem so rushed to ultimately go no where leaving so many unexplained and problematic questions which were simply glossed over for convenience but left my brain hurting.

This is a prefect example of a film which falls in between the user rating system. I awarded this film a reluctant 7 (good) but I wanted to give it a perfect 6.5 (above average) though I thought it deserved more than an average 6 which I have awarded to films I describe as OK or passable but once we get to 5 it is a lost cause.

I only awarded it a higher mark than it deserved because by the end it is a feel good film with some bitter sweet old school narrative but at times it felt like it was written by a ten year old boy but a talented one 'who rocks, shoots the winning goal and has his mothers heart'.

Family, drama, Fantasy. What else one can expect from a Disney Movie!!!

Imagine getting a child with all the qualities that you want in your offspring. Wouldn't that be great!!! This is what happens with Greens (who cannot have any children) when Timothy enters their life bearing everything they wanted in their son but not exactly. And that's the fun part.

I really enjoyed the 100 mins of this emotional family drama with great touch of comedy. The Greens i.e., Jennifer Garner & Joel Edgerton fits perfectly in the role of parents who have no idea what to do with their kid and its nice and funny to watch.

Go for it!!!

I was able to see this movie on a rare night out with my children, ages 13,11,9,7,and 6. It's hard to find a movie that the whole family could enjoy but ALL of them didn't move the whole time. Not one asked to use the restroom, how much longer and what was happening. For any parent you know that it is a HUGE plus!

As for the movie itself, it is by far NOT the best movie around. However, when you can walk away from a movie and reflect on how it relates to your own life then you have a winner.

I am not sure if those without children could appreciate this movie. If you have children and can't appreciate it then there is something amiss in your life.

The Odd Life of Timothy Green (2012)

*** 1/2 (out of 4)

Jennifer Garner and Joel Edgerton play a married couple who learn they can't have children. After a good cry the two decide to make notes of the type of kid they'd like to have and that night they bury it in the garden and sure enough they wish comes true. It's really a shame that so many people have decided not to give this film any attention but I guess I can understand why. People see Disney and I guess they expect children movies and while there's nothing in this film that would be too harmful for kids, I think the target audience is going to be grown ups. THE ODD LIFE OF TIMOTHY GREEN is a cute, charming, funny and at times incredibly sad film that has a lot of imagination working for it. If you need to have everything explained to you or if you must know how logically a kid can grow from a garden then it's probably best just to skip the film. The story itself is clearly meant to inspire people and touch them and I think it does a remarkable job at that. I thought the film was a lot of fun for a number of reasons including seeing two people get their wish of having a child and then having to deal with everything that comes with it. Since Timothy is a special child this adds more problems but I really loved how everyone in this small town and family connected to the kid. Be it the parents, the sports coach, the other kids or the family members. Both Garner and Edgerton do terrific jobs in the roles of the parents and CJ Adams is extremely good as the young boy. The supporting cast includes nice performances from M Emmet Walsh, Lois Smith, Rosemarie DeWitt, Dianne Wiest and it was great seeing David Morse playing the grandfather. The film certainly has a lot of messages but I found it as a parent just to be incredibly sweet, good natured and yes it was incredibly sad at parts. This is certainly a film that uses its imagination to make you smile and cry but there's certainly nothing wrong with that.

I like Peter Hedges' other films. I wish I could have liked this more. Its' heart and message are so in the right place, but it plays like a schmaltzy movie of the week. Jennifer Garner, whom I have really enjoyed in other roles, overplays this one and is very disappointing. The kid who plays Timothy is good enough. His young female friend Odeya Rush is the best in the cast. Joel Edgerton is perfect for Lifetime movie of the week. They are all really likable. So I just wished I liked the film more. And the message is terrific. I cry in schmaltzy films but I think it says much about this film in that the only time it brought any tears was in the final scene which was grounded in reality. When the fantasy was going I just wasn't sucked in.

7 may be a generous rating, but this is a solid family film with a strong positive message. There is a big audience out there for this film. I don't really want to discourage them from seeing it.