Infinitely Polar Bear

Maya Forbes writes and directs a personal story of bittersweet childhood living in livid conditions with her sister, mother and eccentric bipolar father. A landmark first feature that has enough laughs but loads of conflicting emotions.

Zoe Saldana is a strong presence with her loving/loathing/longing and everything in between character. The ideal mother of her time and circumstances and the wife a man would fight for.

Mark Ruffalo is at the centre of it all with his charming, childlike and exuberant portrayal. He masters the manic episodes, the frailty, the fears, the hopes, the joys and the underlying deep love for his wife and kids.

The kids, one played by Maya Forbes's own daughter, are really adorable and act at a very high calibre. Creative, funny, aware and awkwardly accepting their weird family antics with a touch of rebellion.

Ultimately most of the credit is due to Maya's inventing and passionate storytelling in its form, content, message and lasting meaning. A film that is very human and difficult, but finds glimpse of beauty in little things that we should all hold dear.

An easy but complex crowd-pleaser with much meat and mastery for the critics and film aficionados.

Mark Ruffalo stars in "Infinitely Polar Bear" along with Zoe Saldana, Imogene Wolodarsky, and Ashley Aufderheide, from 2014, directed by first-time director Maya Forbes. Forbes is a very talented woman I hope to be seeing more from as a director - she's already an established writer and producer.

The story takes place in Boston in the late 1970s, where Cam Stuart (Ruffalo) lives with his wife Maggie (Saldana) and their children, Amelia and Faith.

Cam is bipolar and job problems lead him to a nervous breakdown. He is institutionalized and then moved to a halfway house. Though he comes from a wealthy family, the money is in a trust. Maggie has a tough time making ends meet. She decides to get her MBA and wins a scholarship to Columbia.

Cam is doing okay on lithium and is more on an even keel, so Maggie has him move in with the kids while she goes to New York for eighteen months, returning home on weekends. Her plan is to return to Boston after school and get a good job, which has eluded her thus far.

It's a tough adjustment. The place is in disarray, Cam constantly embarrasses his kids for either being too friendly with the neighbors or hanging out with them and their friends, not to mention driving around in a pathetic car.

What a wonderful movie told with such warmth and humor. The acting is wonderful all around. Both Ruffalo and Saldana are totally likable, and the kids are great - not cloying at all. The title comes from the kids misunderstanding the term "bipolar."

Definitely worth viewing - a wonderful film.

'INFINITELY POLAR BEAR': Three and a Half Stars (Out of Five)

A comedy-drama flick, about a bipolar dad, struggling to raise his two young daughters; while his wife tries to support their family, in business school. The film was written and directed by Maya Forbes; and it's based on her own life experiences (as a young girl, with a bipolar father). The movie stars Mark Ruffalo, Zoe Saldana, Imogene Wolodarsky and Ashley Aufderheide. It's an interesting, and well made film study; on mental illness, and how it effects loved ones.

The story takes place in late 1970s Boston. Cameron Stuart (Ruffalo) is married to Maggie; and they have two young daughters together, Amelia (Wolodarsky) and Faith (Aufderheide). When Cameron has a bipolar breakdown, he's fired from his job and put in a mental hospital. Maggie moves their daughters into a cheap apartment, in a poor part of town. When Cameron is released from the hospital, Maggie asks him to take care of their kids; while she goes to business school, in New York full time. Cameron agrees, and then struggles to maintain his sanity; while also trying to be a good father.

The film is a great examination of bipolar disease; and how mental illness effects family. Ruffalo is exceptional in the lead, and the two young girls are outstanding (as well); especially Wolodarsky, playing Forbes (as a young girl). Forbes' script is clever, and very thoughtful. Her direction is decent, but not anything too memorable. Still, it's a pretty impressive directorial debut.

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'Infinitely Polar Bear' is a very charming Comedic Drama that focuses on Cameron, a manic-depressive father who (after his wife leaves to study in New York) is required to support his two daughters on his own. Now this is a very small film that many people would not have heard of but with two big leads in Mark Ruffalo and Zoe Saldana, you know that if anything you are going to get really good performances. This was overall a very dramatic, heartwarming, and at times emotional personal story that does delve into slightly darker tones here and there, as you would expect when it comes to the condition being explored in the film. These darker, more serious and dramatic scenes are made up for with the inclusion of some very well placed comedy that really does work to lighten up the tone and also make you laugh briefly throughout.

The performances in this film were all fantastic, especially Mark Ruffalo and the two children in the film, they just killed it the whole way through. Zoe Saldana did a great job with her role even though she isn't featured as much as Ruffalo and the children and was great to see her acting ability in something smaller than a 'Marvel' blockbuster. Ruffalo did such an incredible job at playing a difficult character with such a complex situation that if there weren't so many other great performances this year he might have snuck in a Best Actor Nom. He was incredibly convincing and portrayed all of the very contrasting elements of this very complex extremely well. He bought in great comedic timing to keep the film light and the way he acted, right down to slight hand movements and facial expressions was great to see how really into this character he was. Seriously there were moments in this film where he didn't even need to say anything, just the look on his face at times told me everything i needed to know about his current state and that shows off his incredible acting talent.

The two child roles could have just been typical, generic, annoying children who were just there to act as a device to further the plot. But holy crap they were both fantastic, and even came close to stealing the limelight from Ruffalo. The roles were played by two unknown children Imogene Wolodarsky, and Ashley Aufderheide, who had no other acting roles prior to this film. Now i'm not gonna be getting too excited about these two because one role doesn't mean you are a super talent, but they do show that they have the ability to act in really dramatic roles. These two roles contribute to much of the emotion of the film and seeing how they react and change throughout the course of the film was very interesting and it was fun just watching their transition over time.

In the end, the overall plot of the film is original and very straight-forward but it is the emotional journey of these characters and their progressive relationships that made this such an enjoyable movie. The very heartwarming and dramatic elements in the film were very fun to watch and i had a smile on my face most of the time, it even almost broke me to tears at one pretty emotional moment. The darker moments really contrast the lighter tones and were very sudden in their placement in the film, but the comedy that Ruffalo brings to the table helps to not get too dark. It was fun journey watching this families relationship and if you like heartwarming, dramatic tales, this is definitely an enjoyable worth your time. - 7.6

This film tells the story of a man with bipolar disorder, who has to take care of two children while having unstable mental state.

I find "Infinitely Polar Bear" a realistic and in depth look into the life of a bipolar man. It shows his over-talkative state, his over- friendly personality and the disorganised home. The interaction between him and his children is touching, especially the fact that they accepted the father's embarrassing behaviour. Even if his behaviour is eccentric, he is portrayed to have the best intentions. The wife's support is also very touching. I find that this film is a positive and supportive portrayal of a man with a serious illness.