I saw this a while back, and I thought the subject matter was really interesting: our closest family members can be struck in the middle of the night with a mental illness and can be lost to us so fast. The movie had the potential to be so moving, but I thought the filmmakers did a really bad job at depicting the Tennies' story.
First of all, the performances did the movie no favors. William Mapother and Illeana Douglas do so little to make the Tennies look like likable, concerned parents. Most of their interactions with other characters are incredibly hostile and stilted. Even Bubba Lewis, who I normally like, can't convincing play a schizophrenic character without making it cheesy and funny. Sorry, there needs to be more nuance in depicting someone who has visual hallucinations-- not someone who is completely off the wall.
Maybe I'm too harsh-- the script didn't help the actors. I can go on and on about all the moments I hated: When Mom Tennies had that huge cry towards the end that was way over the top, when Jason had that hallucination of the TV, lines like "I feel compelled to mention that he has a black belt." Aye-yi-yi. Those type of moments you would expect out of an lifetime movie. Furthermore, I get and understood that Jason Tennies was a kind, interesting young man who was taken away too soon, but it doesn't help anyone to constantly weave in flashbacks that don't really have any connection to the present story. It just makes the movie feel disjointed.
Honestly, if this wasn't a true story, I'd probably give the movie a 2. Since it was, I am empathetic to the Tennies' loss and the need for them to tell his story. However, I felt the filmmakers should have done a better job for them in depicting him as a heroic, sympathetic figure-- not some over-dramatized mental illness indie drama.
