Where Love And Dishonesty Overlap
Gently paced, wonderfully acted by a great cast, this movie explores some of the contradictions of modern life.
At what point does encouragement tip over into dishonesty? At what point does encouragement become inappropriate, and does that encouragement set the recipient up for failure?
These sound like the subjects of weighty discussions, but in You Hurt My Feelings, these issues are explored with tenderness and at times laugh out loud humour.
Where the film perhaps falls a little flat is that while we go through the experiences that force the characters to ask questions of themselves and others, it doesn't do much to create emotional investment on their behalf from the audience.
It would be tempting to see the main protagonists as self-indulgent 'snowflakes' experiencing first world problems, but I believe that thought-provoking questions are posed about that area in the Venn diagram that love and support share with dishonesty, however well meant.
That said, Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Beth carries the film with ease, and a special mention goes to Jeannie Berlin as Beth's irascible mother.
I wanted to give this film 7.5 but can't. I've decided that a mere 7 was too low so, despite my reservations, I have been generous and given it and 8.
At what point does encouragement tip over into dishonesty? At what point does encouragement become inappropriate, and does that encouragement set the recipient up for failure?
These sound like the subjects of weighty discussions, but in You Hurt My Feelings, these issues are explored with tenderness and at times laugh out loud humour.
Where the film perhaps falls a little flat is that while we go through the experiences that force the characters to ask questions of themselves and others, it doesn't do much to create emotional investment on their behalf from the audience.
It would be tempting to see the main protagonists as self-indulgent 'snowflakes' experiencing first world problems, but I believe that thought-provoking questions are posed about that area in the Venn diagram that love and support share with dishonesty, however well meant.
That said, Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Beth carries the film with ease, and a special mention goes to Jeannie Berlin as Beth's irascible mother.
I wanted to give this film 7.5 but can't. I've decided that a mere 7 was too low so, despite my reservations, I have been generous and given it and 8.
- Desrio
- Apr 1, 2024