The Upside of Anger

For some, The Upside of Anger will be little more than a beep under the radar. I guess part of the blame belongs to New Line Cinema's marketing campaign. With the prolific cast on board this doesn't seem too hard of a task (Or has Kevin Costner still not been forgiven for Waterworld?). Anyways, for those who do have the chance of seeing the film, they might find themselves enjoying the low-key romantic comedy. It's rather surprising a man directed The Upside of Anger, as it is more than anything else about female companionship. Director Mike Binder's look at these five women ranges from the ordinary (a character who has the ridiculous notion she's repulsive and fat) to the confusing (an utterly confounding where the women start laughing while a guy sits as oblivious as me). In a way, I feel like Kevin Costner's character- not always fully comprehending, yet oddly compelled.

Joan Allen plays Terry, a mother who suspects her husband is fooling around with a perky Swedish secretary. She finds comfort in the company of a retired baseball player (Kevin Costner) that she drinks with. It doesn't take too long for their relationship to turn physical and then something deeper yet. Terry has four daughters. The eldest (Alicia Witt) wants nothing more than to distance herself from Terry after college. Emily (Keri Russell) is a dancer workaholic who Terry is worried doesn't eat enough. Andy (Erika Christensen) is hired as a production assistant by the lowlife producer of Costner's radio show. And the youngest Popeye (Evan Rachel Wood) has a crush on a new kid.

Although it doesn't stray too far from the conventions of the genre, the film does try new things. Perhaps most notably, the Upside of Anger is a romantic comedy where the two characters rolling in the sheets (so to speak) aren't two attractive twenty-year olds. Also, while Terry and her daughters share a close relationship, they're rarely confidantes. A number of times they aren't even friendly to each other.

Also, Mike Binder effectively underplays the film. Something as mundane as a character slurping soup becomes an exercise in tense feelings. And the underplayed and relaxed nature helps draw attention to the performances. Kevin Costner's character could be imagined as the character in Bull Durham or Field of Dreams once the magic has gone. Although he's a drunk slob, he is also a kind and likable guy. All four daughters (particularly Evan Rachel Wood) give good performances. This movie however belongs to Joan Allen. Somewhat paradoxically with the film's underlying message, Allen's best scenes often draw from anger. In one scene, she catches Andy in bed with the producer and unable to say anything, she huffs off in Olympian fury.

For most of its one-hundred-thirty-five minute length, The Upside of Anger is a pleasant romantic comedy with something to say.

I had no idea of the plot other than Kevin Costner was a retired baseball player who drank and smoked weed. I would see just about anything with Kevin in it. It seems to me that the director was trying to put too many different facets of emotion in the film... abandonment, grieve, anger, despair, self pity, humor, hatred, cynicism. As a divorced mother of six, some of the lines "hit too close to home" so that tells me that the essence of the pain was captured. I am still thinking about the ending which really surprised me. I can't even begin to imagine how a wife who felt as she did could handle that. All in all it was a good movie, and I recommend it to anyone who has lost control of their anger in trying to deal with disappointment and resentment.

Among the many pleasures that "The Upside of Anger" offers, Joan Allen and Kevin Costner's performances are very much at the center of it. We are used by now at Joan Allen's marvelous gallery of characters. Here, she reaches very high, creating a character that moves through highs and lows with overwhelming power. It is a performance so entertaining, apart from everything else, that you are really compelled to go wherever she wants to take you. Kevin Costner, however, is the biggest surprise. I'm even tempted to call it a revelation. He carries the soul of the character in his sleeve with disarming charm and humanity, not a single false note. I believed him, I loved him, I want to see him again. Mike Binder, the gifted writer director of this film, unfortunately, outstretches himself a little bit. He gives too much room to his character and instead of allowing it to grow with the famous less is more formula, he concedes himself a couple of extra long and repetitive scenes that slow down the proceedings in a rather dangerous way. If I had been the producer I would have fought like crazy to eliminate the supermarket scene. But I'm not going to dwell on it. The film is a triumph for the two leads. Thank you Joan Allen and well done Kevin Costner. I'll see you again at Oscar time.

I saw this when it premiered at the Sundance film festival (although the director & actors didn't bother to come to our screening), and I enjoyed it. Kevin Costner plays a baseball player, but the movie is not about baseball; it deals with the anger the lead character feels when her husband disappears, along with his secretary. Joan Allen plays the wife of the missing man, and is the mother to four daughters, played very well by Evan Rachel Wood, Keri Russel, Erika Christensen, and Alicia Witt. Joan Allen was marvelous. We laughed many times when she glared in anger at different characters in the movie (and we were glad she wasn't mad at US! LOL...) I have not been a big fan of Kevin Costner in recent years, but thought that he did a great job as the man who helps Joan Allen's character pick up the pieces. The writer/director also has a role in the film as an older man who dates Joan Allen's daughter. I thought the message of the film was delivered well, and it was an entertaining story. There is a twist at the end that I truly did not see coming. I don't think it spoiled the movie, it was just unexpected.

After her performance in "The Ice Storm" it is no surprise that Joan Allen could carry a movie like "The Upside of Anger". Nor was it a surprise that she and Alicia Witt could beautifully play off each other in their confrontational mother and daughter roles. What did surprise was that the film featured equally strong performances from the other members of the cast. Even writer/director Mike Binder does a fine "on-screen" job as a slimy but not entirely unsympathetic radio producer. Kevin Costner would be wise to stay with this type of role (and with comedy) instead of big-budget epic stuff.

The casting of Witt with Erika Christensen, Evan Rachel Wood, and Keri Russell as the four sisters was inspired. It was refreshing just to see a film family that looked enough alike physically to actually be related to each other. Since Christensen looks so much like Julia Stiles they could have even added a fifth sister although their resemblance is so strong that it might be confusing. All the subtle birth order distinctions felt right. The oldest (Witt) was the most connected to mom even though it did not appear so on the surface. The second (Christensen-who absolutely glows on the screen) was determined to be different than her older sister. The third (Russell) was the most connected to the father, missed him the most, and had the least understanding of the mother. The youngest (Wood) was way ahead of the curve and the most perceptive character in the film. Watch for all this stuff because it is there, and watch how no matter how down the mother becomes she continues to monitor the welfare of her daughters.

Binder gave into the temptation to use cheesy special effect gimmicks several times (the explosion at the dinner table, the neighborhood transition from summer to winter, the ballet fantasy, and the daughters growing older during the funeral scene). Although done well they seemed out of place. Also Binder should review the Kent State shootings, there were four students killed-not six.

There is a spectacular shot at the wedding. Beginning as an over the shoulder shot of Hadley (Witt) sucking in her "plump" cheeks, the camera pans slightly right and moves toward the wedding party as the focus changes to bring them out of a blur.

The film's ironic twist in the last 15 minutes is borrowed wholesale from "Whatever Happened to Aunt Alice". I particularly liked Wood's beautiful narration which helped clarify the title and theme, necessary (or at least helpful) after this ironic story line twist. She managed to sound both detached and involved, it is actually the voice-over for her broadcasting class project. When we are suddenly forced to reevaluate everything that has gone before in what we thought was just an interesting comedy, Wood steps in and steers us to internalize the theme. They go out on a shot of Wood looking up from her Mac and smiling. Amazing.

This is the best of Binder's writing: "Anger and resentment can stop you in your tracks. That's what I know now. It needs nothing to burn but the air and the life that it swallows and smothers. It's real though, the fury, even when it isn't. It can change you, turn you, mold you and shape you into something you're not. The only upside of anger then, is the person you become, hopefully someone that wakes up one day and realizes they're not afraid of its journey. Someone that knows that the truth is, at best, a partially told story. That anger, like growth, comes in spurts and fits and in its wake leaves a new chance of acceptance and the promise of calm".

"The Upside of Anger" is one of those rare films that I believe everyone should make an effort to connect with, doing so will make you a better person. Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.