Adam Brody stars
as Carter – a guy who just got dumped by his super hot
supermodel
girlfriend. His
whole life feels like it
is in flux with the dumping and his growing career dissatisfaction, so
Carter
takes the opportunity to head off to Michigan
and care for his grandmother (Olympia Dukakis), who claims she is
dying, but
she’s more of a drama queen than hospice patient. While there, he strikes up
a relationship
with the family across the street, whose mother, Sarah (Meg Ryan),
possibly is
facing a huge health crisis, and daughter, Lucy (Kristen Stewart), is
trying to
cope with being a teenager who has grown apart from her mother and
needs some
advice.
Will these three
be able to help each other cope with all sorts of problems?
In the Land of Women is one of those
talking-about-their-feelings movies, but one the audience
can connect with due to the strong dialogue and even stronger acting. Brody seems to be emerging
as a future star
and all around good actor by taking a role where he shuns his familiar
wise guy
character to show us some real pain, humor and longing.
After this performance, he might start to
steal all of Zach Braff’s troubled-twentysomething-in-angst
roles
One of the
biggest and best surprises is the re-emergence of Meg Ryan. She is fantastic as the
mother reassessing
life and her own possible mortality.
She’s a woman wounded by the actions of
others, pained by the loss of a
relationship with her daughter and also longing for one person she can
bare her
troubled soul to, and never makes it seem too cute.
Ryan is marvelous and more real than you have
ever seen each step of the way. Even
Stewart shows she is developing into a strong young actress by playing
a
teenager who doesn’t chew up the scenery unnecessarily, even
when her story
might not be the strongest.
In the Land of Women does
feel likes it drags at times, especially since it is not a movie
driven by story or plot, but one that envelopes you as you learn more
and more
about these characters, their trials and tribulations.
Writer/director Jon Kasdan never goes for the
melodramatic, only that which feels real and impacts the audience
enough to
feel like they want to stick around and find out what will happen to
these
characters. He
provides dialogue that
keeps the mood lighthearted when needed, but delivers the dramatic,
heartbreaking moments you expect from this type of movie.
In the Land of Women is a
solid movie for those who
want to feel.
3
Waffles (Out
Of 4)
In The
Land Of Women is
rated PG-13 for sexual content, thematic elements and
language
Copyright
2007 - WaffleMovies.com
