Jack

Rarely does a movie so captivate me with its honesty. This movie was extremely well done, and the characters are truthful, to a painful degree. The relationship between each one of them is a genuine experience for the viewer. I lost myself in the complexities that existed between the family, and the dynamic between each member of this crumbling family unit. I believe that we will see great things from Anton Yelchin in the future. His deadpan delivery of the poetically tragic events of puberty make for a beautiful personification of his character. My heart hurt for him, and I found myself loving his character and hating the end of the movie. This is a movie that should have gotten more publicity, for I hadn't even heard of it when I luckily found it on cable...

Even gay dads can be good dads. but they can still make growing up hard. In the 21st century, family and personal relations are changing in a way that hasn't been dealt with on the larger scale they are in the 2000's.

As if being a teenager wasn't hard enough! Not only people have to deal with new social changes, but society's reaction. And you thought you had it hard growing up!

The narration does bring back memories of 'the wonder years.'

And you get to see Rizzo as a mommy. But having your dad's gay partner named 'BOB' seems a little passive aggressive.

Long ago one said: "Give me a god kid and you will see how great parent am I". But reality is somewhat different. This is a great story about growing; finding identity, but ... Being a parent for a while I would say that Jack's way of thinking is something that I saw with my daughter, rather than son. The way he understands social relations is more feminine. Someone could expect that Jack is more vulnerable than he really is. His self-confidence is unexpectedly high. Nevertheless, movie keeps attention till the end, and moral of the story is intact. Film has good rhythm, sometimes catchy photography with emphasis on ordinary urban life situations. Really good family movie that any parent could discuss with their youngster!

Every commentator already said what I have to say. Wonderful movie, great performances, great script, etc. I saw this movie at Hallmark yesterday (Sunday Jan.17, 2005). Didn't catch it from the start but today I entered IMDb.com to search for "Silver and Channing working together" and found the title. The piece is great, and it is a pleasant surprise to watch a recent (2004) movie at a non-premium channel (Hallmark) as per my cable provider here in Paraguay. It is definitively a movie to discuss about with our kids (I am a father of 3, two boys: 26 and 21 and a 15-year old girl), especially here down in the middle of South America in our land-locked country where such situations do appear, though probably not as frequently as in USA, I guess (i.e., parents with children later on becoming functionally gay). I found Jack's crush on the beaten wife especially moving and as real as it probably happened to many a youngster with a beautiful and lovely teacher, aunt, classmate's mother, whatever...

I too had not heard of this film and came across it by accident. It is well written and acted with a good solid cast. The portrayals of all the characters are strong and very well done. The film deals with a complex subject with sensitivity and understanding. The film shows a seldom seen portrayal of relationships and life itself. The background narration by the young man provides real insight into the turmoil he works through. I would recommend this film to all teenage boys in particular as it provides a perspective, which they are not likely to find in school. It seems to me that many teenage boys are frightened by gay people and often use this fear to strike out against what they do not understand, as witnessed by the writing on his locker. The film is certainly more than worth the time to watch it.