Everybody's Fine

Good, I'm glad. I really wish that they had thought of a different title for Everybody's Fine, like maybe 'Nobody's Perfect'?? That would have definitely been more fitting. And to think this is a Christmas movie. Well, it's nice to see Robert De Niro, the 'best actor in the world' back innit. Even if this movie was released straight to DVD here.

Frank (Robert De Niro) is a retired man who lives all alone and wants to get the family together for Christmas. But all of his family cancel on him, so he decides if they don't want to come to him then he will just go to them. He embarks on a journey across America to see his children, even though he has medical conditions which could be harmed, and discovers what he has been missing all these years.

The cast looks pretty good, practically too good for this to go straight to DVD. How often is it that you have four very talented actors--De Niro, Drew Barrymore, Kate Beckinsale and Sam Rockwell--in the same film?? This film was a surprise, as it was actually very good but had some things marring it's brilliance. First the direction, which seemed very documentary style and came across as a bit whimsical and weird. Second, the lack of character depth. I know there were quite a few characters and we didn't really know that much about them until the end but they all seemed very stereotypical, even though it was obvious that they were far from it. And thirdly was the lack of understanding between the viewer and the film, which made it difficult to watch sometimes.

However, I really liked this film because it was a pleasant film that is underrated on so many levels. There is something for everyone here, and you could find yourself absorbed in it, in short sharp bursts.

Not your average Christmas dramadey, pleasant but lacking something.

6/10