User reviews

Tobey Maguire going crazy, and why? Because of his Garden? Well not only, there are reasons too. Plus who can be mad at Raccoons, aren't they adorable? (No I'm the only one that thinks that?) Seriously though: The movie and the shenanigans from all involved are sort of over the top, but still decent enough to watch. The cast list reads really great (Mr. Baldwin giving a speech that is life changing or at least should be for the character involved).

The movie is uncertain where it wants to take the viewer (proof the alternate ending on display/disc), but the ride is still entertaining enough to take. Just don't expect anything to fancy and you'll be satisfied

The Details is a dark comedy with an incredible cast and good writing. What I really enjoyed was the fact that the filmmakers didn't seem to sugar coat anything and try to deceive you that a perfect family exists, and that people don't struggle with temptation and guilt on everyday basis. It's a greatly exaggerated story of an ordinary man with ordinary problems that get him into an extraordinary mess. Casting is incredible, and all actors deliver great performances. Unfortunately, none of the characters, with the exception of Tobey Maguire's Jeff Lang is truly developed, which could have made that film even better. Some of the scenes seem a little redundant, for example the boat scene at the beginning of the movie, but that doesn't really spoil the movie as a whole. All in all, it's an interesting piece of work. It will probably not inspire you or stay in your memory forever, but it will definitely make you think about your actions, and how quickly things in life can get ugly.

This film tells how the seemingly perfect middle class life of a doctor falls apart, after the emergence of raccoons in his garden.

After reading the plot summary, I still did not have a clue what "The Details" was about. After watching it, I can safely say that it is a engaging drama about the unfortunate decay of a suburban middle class family. The plot is very engaging, as we are confronted with a lot of moral dilemmas that are very real and close to viewers. I feel very sorry for Laura Linney's character, even though she is a bit eccentric. The only complain I have is the casting of Tobey McGuire, he is just too baby-face for me to believe he is an accomplished doctor.

It is a pity that "The Details" has a title, that is neither informative nor enticing.

In King County, Washington, Dr. Jeff Lang (Tobey Maguire) has been married for ten years with Nealy Lang (Elizabeth Banks) and they have a little boy. Their best friends are Rebecca Mazzoni (Kerry Washington), who has studied with Jeff in the medical school, and her husband Peter Mazzoni (Ray Liotta). Jeff decides to sod his backyard, but the grass comes with worms underneath and raccoons destroy his sod during the night. Jeff wants also build another room in the house for his planned second son, but the City Hall blocks the project. Jeff decides to build the room without the approval and he gives a beautiful plant for his next door neighbor, the unstable Lila (Laura Linney) that lives with her cat Matthew, expecting that she does not denounce his construction work to the authorities. Jeff also likes to play basketball with his friend Lincoln (Dennis Haysbert), who has kidney problem and needs hemodialysis.

However, the raccoons disturb Jeff and Nealy has not had sex with him for six months. Jeff decides to poison the raccoon and he meets Rebecca to drink and relief his bitterness about his dried up of sex marriage and they end the day having sex in Rebecca's home. Jeff finds a better work for Lincoln as a coach at a school and he learns that his friend will die soon. Jeff gets close to a breakdown when Peter discovers that his wife betrayed him with Jeff; Matthew is accidentally poisoned by Jeff and Lila seduces him and they have sex. Jeff decides to donate one kidney to save the life of his friend, but when he is recovering from the surgery, he learns that Lila is pregnant and he comments his life with Lincoln. Will Jeff find redemption in his journey to hell?

"The Details" is a love or hate movie, with dark humor, drama and amoral story. Jeff Lang is a family man and doctor that begins his descent to hell when raccoons destroy his expensive sod. The turmoil of his life is funny since the bad things sequentially happen to Jeff. The scene when Lila tells to Jeff that she is pregnant is hilarious. Tobey Maguire is a great actor but his baby face does not fit well to his role. But Laura Linney "steals" the movie with a top-notch performance. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): Not Available

The Details begins with a pleasant enough introduction and promises of a humorously dark spin on suburbia . With a stellar cast that offers up top notch performances the movie moves along with a theme-park roller-coaster like flow between comedy and tragedy. Certainly humorous and at times truthful, the movie has a Jekyll & Hyde flow that creates a whole lesser then its pieces.

A seemingly perfect couple, Jeff the Doctor (Tobey Maguire) and the beautiful Nealy (Elizabeth Banks) are in a rough patch in their stale marriage. Two ill advised home improvement ventures lead Jeff to a run in with some pesky raccoons and a even more pesky encounter with a crazy cat lady neighbor(Laura Linney). Doctor Jeff's life begins to unravel as he tries to navigate his way through bribery, blackmail and his urge to feel some sort of spark that is missing from his marriage. A woeful tale of infidelity gone bad unfolds that leads the Doc down a slippery slope. He tries to cure his woes with a few doses of philanthropy, but no good deed goes unpunished, its the details that always gets you in the end.

The performances by the cast are top notch, Toby Maguire as Dr. Jeff gives a complex performance that is humorous, emotional and sympathetic. Elizabeth Banks has flashes of brilliance, the last 10 minutes give glimpses of what more her character could have offered had the filmmakers seen the opportunity. Lauara Linney is comic genius in a turn that is right up there with her best. Dennis Haysbert and Ray Liotta give very pure performances. This movie couldn't have asked for better side players which only makes it more disappointing that the filmmakers didn't create a better landscape.

The Details has brilliant moments of humor, but its see-saw approach between gags and edge of darkness stuff keep it in a gray area which can only be successful in the most polished of hands (e.g. American Beauty). Ironically its in the details, where the Details fails. There are numerous moments in the film where just a few tweaks could have kept it from flying off the tracks. The lasting impression is an attempt at modern story telling that wastes excellent performances by not keeping a tighter grip on the story.

I expect some buzz about the film after its initial premiere. Tobey Maguire gives a fabulous performance and gives all that he could, however once this sort of film is removed from the gloomy shadows of the downer films that typically makes up most of Sundance it probably won't fair very well. Shame really, this could have been a more significant film.

Found this totally by accident last nite, even though it's 10 years old. I Love the ALL STAR CAST and it's Such a Bizzarro little movie. That will make you Laugh, Cringe, Smile, Feel Terrible, scratch your head and question people's choices and wonder about how Good People can do TERRIBLE things when in a Fix, selfishly and out of Self Preservation. Ray Liotta on the Bridge and Laura Linney's over the top Nuttiness Drove this movie home. Ha hahahaha And lets not forget All those CUTE RACCOONS! ;D Watch it if you like any of the actors listed.

Harvey Weinstein clearly had a case of buyers remorse when he spent $7.5 million for the rights of The Details at Sundance and then spent the next two years keeping it off his calendar and having it re-edited without the director. In usual Weinstein fashion he eventually lost interest in the film and dumped it in a handful of theaters and video on demand. The result is a watchable, but unsuccessful black comedy about a philandering doctor and the people he takes down with him, when raccoons take over his yard and begin to drive him nuts. The tone is all over the place and while most of the cast does good work, we are subjected to a rare terrible performance from Laura Linney. She over acts to a embarrassing degree and stops her scenes cold in their tracks. The subject matter of infidelity, blackmail and being caught is too weighty for The Details' light as a feather approach to the material. Nothing really resonates and the film feels hollow and never goes as far in the black comedy route as it should. The resolution of the film sidesteps any challenging material for an ending that is rushed in one conversation. Perhaps the original cut of The Details addressed these issues, but I doubt we'll ever know.

My wife and I just watched this tonight and enjoyed it.

THE DETAILS is one of those movies that you'll watch once and probably never bother watching again. Still, I enjoyed it.

It's a dark comedy, steeped in a strong dose of irony - kind of like the movie FARGO, on sedatives, with raccoons.

I'd love to say something deep and profound about the raccoons, maybe something like bandits in the night, but that's just a bit too much like hard work.

I'd recommend pouring yourself an old-fashioned and sipping on it thoughtfully while you watch Tobey Maguire tangle himself deeper and deeper into a self-made tar-baby-trap.

Steve Vernon.

Perhaps I lack the misanthropy to find humor in this movie, but aside from everything seeming to have spun from a battle with raccoons I didn't see anything humorous about it. I have to wonder at the type of person that would find the events in this movie even darkly comedic. Maybe it was my present mindset, yet I cringed through the entire movie. Unless you find coerced adultery with a batsh-t crazy woman and murder funny I wouldn't go in to this movie expecting laughs. It lacked even the vengefully humorous relationships of ..say "War of the Roses" something that I would consider darkly comedic. This merely plunged you deeper and deeper into despair. I'm NOT saying it was a BAD movie....just terribly misrepresented.

Tobey Maguire is a pitch perfect anti-hero in this bizarre, absurd, dark movie about love and raccoons. The movie plays like a demented fairy tale, replete with butterflies, rainbows and cross-bows. The audience I saw it with was in stitches. But this isn't really a comedy. I wouldn't even call it a black comedy. I'd say the movie is more of a magical absurd comedy, if that is even a genre. It plays like a fever dream, swinging wildly between realism and camp. I was surprised about 100 times during the watching of this film, and to tell much more about it would just spoil the fun of it for you. Suffice to say, you will not get what you're expecting. If you want something normal, this isn't it... I will warn that sometimes the movie makes your stomach turn, as you're forced to live in the shoes of a morally suspect character... but I think that was the point. There are no good or bad people in this movie. There are only morally gray people, who behave like raccoons... hungry, horny, needy and desperately seeking worms... I was lucky enough to see it in a recent festival screening. I think it will be really interesting to see how general audiences respond....

There's no real way to go into the story of "The Details" without giving the…details…away. All I will tell you is this: It's a movie that is self-aware that it is so close in proximity with the feeling of "American Beauty" that you hear a special ringtone on Tobey Maguire's cellphone to reference that movie. Dennis Haysbert stole the movie; his acting in some of the scenes had me in tears. Elizabeth Banks dials her comedic-self down in throughout the movie and shows her butt, briefly. Tobey Maguire is a man-child, and I'll never understand how I'm supposed to believe he's a doctor in this. And there are multiple raccoons and cats throughout the film.

To me, the whole movie felt like an elaborate play with a familiar story that could've been written for Reader's Digest. You could also feel like the story could've been taken from real life news articles or something. There are various visual/time effects used in the movie, which felt distracting at times and out of place, almost like the director was horsing around with the editor for too long while in post-production.

I would recommend the movie to fans of the cast, but the movie isn't going to go over well with all of my friends who like comedies. It just wasn't very comedic or funny but more outlandish and insane-to-believe. It's hard to believe myself when I give it a 6 star rating because the movie was very middle-of-the-road, but again, Haysbert boosted the likability of the movie, gaining it a star or two just for him.

Hello I just finished watching this movie and I think it is time for a review. Luckely for me it was better then the last Dark Comedy I saw. Which was the Room. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I really like the Dark Comedy genre. And this is not the greatest of all time. But it is a pretty descent film. It got a few laughs along the way. And the acting isn't bad at all. The plot is enjoyable and not boring. It's a good movie to watch when you're in the mood for a light and easy movie. If you like Dark Comedy I would recommend watching it. I really liked it I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did. Hope this was helpful. Have fun watching don't forget the popcorn and greetings.

A huge part of the the movie roams around aimlessly, with loose scripting and lagging direction. Whatever the role, age, doesnt matter it's Peter Parker, Tobey.

Tobey maguire is jeff lang. He's got a lot going on right now. He wants to build another room on his house, in anticipation of having a second child. Complications. With the new sod come new raccoons. His renovations have not been approved. And he's fighting with his wife. And the next door neighbor. Some bigtime co-stars... ray liotta, laura linney. About 25 minutes in, it gets kind of silly.. the music and the scenery speed up and things take on a cartoony feeling. Then, a dark turn; jeff smokes some weed, and makes some really bad decisions. His life is just spiraling now. Can he straighten things out ? It's a weird one. Interesting to watch. Written and directed by jacob estes. Won awards for his film mean creek.

Don't bother with this movie. The premise was bad. The execution was bad. The acting was overdone and overindulgent. I'll just put it this way- this movie created a new rule in my mind. If there is a "dark comedy" with several name actors in it then don't see it unless you know other people who loved it. This is just one of those movies where it seems like someone called in a bunch of favors to get made even though it never came together whatsoever.

The opening sequence did make it seem like there was some potential. Then it just sort of drifted and the audience is left waiting for the good parts to start. We were left waiting for the good parts to start all the way to the end credits. Do your self a favor and pass on this truly horrendous movie.

The only reason this movie is getting 2 stars is for Elizabeth Banks and Ray Liotta. They both make comedies so it wasn't as pathetic for them to be in this as Laura Linney and Tobey Maguire. Maguire as the main character was unbelievable as a man that beautiful women throw themselves at. He has zero personality and let's face it, he's not a real looker.

The first 45 min. to and hour were about nothing but raccoons in his yard, or it seemed like it anyway. It was slow, stupid and boring. My husband fell asleep and I was glad when it was over.

Don't waste your time because of names in this piece of fluff.

There's scarcely anything than better than a fierce, biting black comedy on a bright, sunny morning and Jacob Aaron Estes' The Details delivers one and then some. Not only does the film give us a wonderful premise with efficient character actors, but it's the way that we dive into these socially and morally complex people that makes it such a wonderfully black experience. Rarely has a film bottled me with so much guilty, unadulterated pleasure and rarely have I liked it so much.

Tobey Maguire, one of my favorite actors, plays Jeff Lang, a doctor in suburbia with a lovely wife, a cute kid, and a Toyota Prius. As a doctor, he lives a moderately enjoyable life, but he feels rather unfulfilled with the lack of pleasure in his life sexually and literally. His wife, Nealy (Elizabeth Banks) rarely is in the proper mood, even when the kid is asleep, so Jeff frequents various pornographic websites to satisfy his typical male urges.

But it's to the extent he goes to satisfy his deeply unsatisfied urges is when The Details takes off and becomes almost fearless. Jeff decides to commit an act of infidelity with a close friend named Rebecca (Kerry Washington). They wind up having sex and it's all downhill from there once her husband Peter (the great Ray Liotta) finds out. Upon discovering the situation, he gives Jeff two possible options on how to keep him quiet about the situation and both are equally dismaying.

The shocking thing is even after this small adventure into cheating, Jeff still isn't completely satisfied and winds up accepting sex from his quirky middle-aged next door neighbor (Laura Linney). While this is all happening, Jeff's other newfound interest is attempting to rid his backyard of raccoons who have been persistently digging up his sod.

The Details brings to light two different things about the masculinity of males that can not be ignored; their quest for sexual pleasure and their desire to accomplish difficult and demanding tasks. The fact that the film explores these deep, inner urges of most males' psychs is a challenge from the writing department and it allows the viewer a deeper, larger motivation for the despicable steps taken by the anti-hero Jeff.

Because Maguire has now completed his odyssey with Sam Raimi's Spider-Man franchise, it's pleasing to see him try out different lines of work to hopefully become known as a character actor, with roles like this and Seabiscuit under his belt. Here, he immerses himself into the deeply complex and ambiguous role of Jeff Lang and his diversity and hidden talents come forth in this black comedy of errors. This film is now available on video on demand and will be in selected theaters on November 2, 2012. Make an effort to see one of the funniest, blackest, and most deliciously subversive comedies in years.

Starring: Tobey Maguire, Elizabeth Banks, Laura Linney, Ray Liotta, and Kerry Washington. Directed by: John Aaron Estes.

I like actor Tobey Maguire in many other comedies. He aint bad in this one either, but the "jokes" never really become funny. Why waste my time on that? It does start out quite promising though, because at the beginning it really seems to be an intro to a promising story about an out of control neighbour dispute, but somehow in the end it never really takes off. Missed opportunity. Nagging disappointed feeling.

This is a potentially very average film, however, Toby Maguire's voice and face make it almost unbearable. In order to better enjoy this film, I would recommend either blindfolding yourself or plugging your ears before watching it. If you find that you still can't take it, then doing both is also acceptable. I would also argue against this film being classified as a comedy, as I can't really remember laughing at any point. A more appropriate classification would possibly be fantasy, as a man who looks and sounds like Toby Maguire would never be permitted to be in a five metre radius of women as attractive as Elizabeth Banks or Kerry Washington, never mind actually having sex with them. Witchcraft or some sort of sorcery would definitely be required.

When I think of dark comedies, I think of everything from Dr. Strangelove to Harold and Maude. Dark, but comic. This film has all the humor and charm of getting hit by a garbage truck. Each one of the characters we see is singularly unlikable to the extreme, beginning with the married couple who stay together even though they can't stand each other, don't want to sleep with each other (the wife, anyway), but feel free to sleep with anybody else they can get their hands on. People called Gone Girl the "date night movie for people who never want to marry." This garbage is the "date night movie for people who never want to date." The two, morally bankrupt creeps married to each other in this film deserve each other, and everybody else we see on the screen deserves to be avoided at all costs. I guess I've seen worse films than this, but I can't think of a film in recent memory that's made me so incredibly angry as this infuriating mess. View at your own risk. Ick!