Accidents Happen

The Conway Family goes beyond the definition of tragedy. This dark comedy is ridiculous at best because of the story-line-there are just too many unfortunate accidents occurring on the block where the family lives. We have an old lady running around after the bowling ball incident that you would swear resembles the late Ruth Gordon. With it all, there is still a remarkable performance by Geena Davis as the embittered frustrated mother. The car accident that killed her daughter and left her son in a vegetative state affected the two surviving sons and led to the dissolution of her marriage. The beginning with the neighbor burning to death on the grill and the surviving son's friend whose father is killed when the boy and the survivor toss a bowling ball and the father swerves in his car to avoid a direct hit. A direct hit was needed in the writing of this mess.

A not even remotely good movie. The actors looked uncomfortable like they didn't want to be there and the American accents kept changing into Australian ones a lot (like they also did not want to be there). I usually enjoy Geena Davis' movies, but in this one her character was not endearing or even funny when she was supposed to be. I did not find the comments at the wake about Doug's deceased father funny- were they supposed to be? Without comedy and any characters to care about there is no dark humor. Were we supposed to feel sorry for Billy when he was trying to get out of admitting what he did with the bowling ball (even when his friend was begging him to admit it)? Where we supposed to egg him on when he was more interested in looking for a bowling ball that incriminated him than worrying that his friend's father was dead? Were we supposed to cheer when he got out of it and his friend's family had to live without the life insurance and their father was labeled as someone who killed himself? Were we supposed to celebrate when he was smoking dope with a girl and laugh when he robbed a store naked? Were we supposed to feel sorry for him when his brother in the nursing home didn't pay attention to self-centered Billy? Was this written by someone high on dope? Because it seems to be the only excuse for this accident. This movie should have been called "Stay away from Billy the uncaring narcissist or your death will be labeled an accident or suicide".

It's 1982, and Billy Conway (Harrison Gilbertson) lives in a shattered family. Eight years ago, his family was in a car accident that killed his sister and made his brother a vegetable. His father has since left the family. His older brother is an angry drunk. His mother (Geena Davis) is struggling mightily to keep things together. The boy is an irresponsible destructive selfish brat. It is impossible to root for him. Certainly he makes it hard to find anything likable in his behavior. It is very tiring to watch this idiot destroy everything he touches. Geena Davis does get some great lines. In one superb scene, she almost saves the movie all by herself. She's really the only thing to watch this movie for.

Just saw this "dysfunctional family because of tragedy" movie on cable. Thought I'd give it a try even though it just had a 2.5 star rating and was labeled a comedy (?!). Turned out someone made a boo-boo on both. I was blown away by the story, the directing, the acting, the cinematography... All I can think of is the fact that the movie is "Australian" might have held it back. There was nothing else that could have done so. Definitely worthy of an Oscar nomination for picture, acting and directing. One expects Geena Davis to give a fine performance, but all the young actors surrounding her made her job so much easier. I was crying along with them. The only thing I didn't like was the ending. Leaves you hanging. But, that's life.

Call me abnormal, but a movie based around families loved ones all dying in random car crashes, is nothing I can digest as a comedy. This movie seemed like it was going for a Indie feel, but didn't have any real edge to it. It was a bunch of tragedies after another, but they weren't really funny or ironic. Even the moments that were supposed to be emotional, were awkward or set up poorly. This movie just couldn't pull things together to connect emotionally with the viewer. That said, one thing this movie did do a good job at was with making the set look like things from the 80s. It looked like it could have been the set from E.T..

Confusing movie that can't decide whether it wants to be a dark comedy or a serious and sad drama. This confusion seems to stem from the over-the-top bad luck of poor Billy Conway. I mean, how likely is it that a driver in a residential area has a fatal car wreck while swerving to avoid a bowling ball? Or somebody gets fatally burned (opening credits) while firing up the BBQ? Sure, accidents happen... but not like this. The acting is fairly good, with Gina Davis playing a dysfunctional mom who has a talent for creative word nastiness. Too bad the other members lacked her verbal flagrancy, if they talked at all. And some of the more interesting characters (the overly sorry girl at the wake... the addicted aunt) are left woefully unexplored. A few times I also thought it was going to turn towards a teen coming-of-age storyline, but those moments quickly passed in what must've been an attempt to show us that teenage Billy is going through normal stuff for his age? Overall a depressing movie that lacks any insight or specific message. It does show us a slice of dysfunctional family life, but we're never sure what the point is and why we're watching. Some good acting brings it up a notch or two, but can't save a poor script.

ACCIDENTS HAPPEN – CATCH IT ( B+ ) Accident happen, is truly a delightful surprise. I am a sucker for Dysfunctional families and Coming of Age movies and this was a perfect combination of both. The movie is beautifully crafted and the slow motion accidents sequences are wonderfully shot. I really appreciate the director Andrew Lancaster who choose a simple story and portrayed so beautifully plus the comic view of severe issue was a different touch. Geena Devis did a fantastic job & her comic timing was just perfect. She proved yet again that she is a great actress. Harrison Gilbertson stole the show for me, he is cute kid and a great performer. I could see in her eyes how talented he was and standing in front of Geena Davis in such complex yet humorous story was wonderful. I surely can bet he will be a huge once he grows up a little more. Overall a great movie with great ensemble cast. Everyone did a great job making this movie memorable for me. Watch it!

Yes, there is some irony in the tragedies that the Conway family undergoes, and I can understand Geena Davis's dark character of Gloria Conway amusement at finding out that her one-time date Bob's wife was electrocuted while using the dishwasher. It's tragedy upon tragedy that makes this odd demise of a character we never meet a bit humorous in an off-beat sort of way. But this is a family that is really hard to watch at times, because they just don't seem all that real to me. Gloria isn't the most likable mom out there (even Kathleen Turner's Beverly in "Serial Mom" was surpringly likable, even knowing that she was a psychopathic killer), and the break-up of her marriage to husband Ray (Joel Tobeck) isn't explored enough to be believable. I actually understood the kids more than the parents, identified with their childish pranks (the scene at the drive-in theatre was quite amusing), and really felt bad for the poor son Gene who ends up in a nursing home after a car accident that killed his sister, Linda. As for son Billy (outstandingly portrayed by Harrison Gilbertson), I felt his pain as well, feeling that he knew that everybody wished it was him, not his twin Gene, who ended up basically a vegetable. Even the drunken brother Larry I could identify with, knowing how deep the pain of loss and not understanding why everything so bad keeps happening. This is a family that needed major therapy, and unfortunately, the poor kids (minus Gene and their late sister, Linda) had to deal with parents that were too selfish to see how their behaviors were destroying the entire family. This was a courageous role for Geena Davis to take on, much more challenging dramatically than even her role in "Thelma and Louise", and she is excellent. The problem is that from the beginning (when we see the Conway's neighbor killed in a fire caused by an exploding BBQ) there is such a negativity surrounding this family, and the mother is at the forefront of it. Their interaction with the Post family (their other next-door neighbors) is deeply explored, and when tragedy strikes that family (thanks to an intended harmless prank), the two are drawn together. I would have liked to have seen more development of the relationship between the two mothers as they struggled to deal with their grief, anger, and subsequent forgiveness. A powerful moment comes when Mrs. Post (Sarah Woods in a very good understated performance) whispers "thank you" to Gloria after the truth comes out about her husband's death. I found this hard to give a high rating to, but since I obviously found myself drawn in emotionally and was extremely touched by the ending (concerning the widow of the elderly man killed at the beginning), I ranked this higher than I originally intended. I can only suggest watching this movie with an open mind and open heart because it really is difficult to embrace this family unless you try and understand each character for their own individual pains, which are many.

I just finished watching this on Netflix Instant Play & it was completely horrific. Pointless and depressing. It is not a dark comedy and it is not a comedy-drama. Geena Davis had about two moderately humorous lines - the rest of it was completely lacking in humor. Let me be clear, IMO, the acting was mostly acceptable & I found no fault with the direction. The problem was the writing...awful, awful, awful. You've gotta feel for the guy who wrote this - I'd hate to have a mind that could create something like this. I should have followed my instincts and turned this off after the first 15 minutes. But based on good reviews here, I figured it was bound to get better. It did not! Never again will I watch (or read) anything written by this guy!

This movie hooks you in with the promise of quirky indie cinema and lovable characters, but what you're left with is a pointless, sappy crap. Awful acting. Awful script. Geena Davis is a saving grace in the film, with barely anything but hokey phrasings and maudlin tone shifts to work with. The images and music were fantastic, but in between beautiful shots and gorgeous sounds there is nothing but exposition in dialogue, crappy narration at points, and seemingly mindless character motivations. This is the product of a confused script. It takes from the writer's own childhood, so I can get how it's probably catered towards some sort of reality in the past. But there is no embellishment that makes it into a good story, simply coincidence and misfortune, most of which happens because of the actions of the characters - who contrary to what the movie states, are largely responsible. I mean, the kid throws a bowling ball down the street in the middle of the night and has the balls to say "It wasn't anyone's fault" when a car gets run off the road. Misguided adolescence, maybe. Good filmmaking and relatable themes? Not a chance. I will concede that the climax of the film, where Davis finally visits her son, is very well done, and probably renders any audience speechless. But this does not save the film, nor does it seem to change where this trainwreck was heading. I could complain more about the content of this illogical sap-fest, but I urge those of you looking for a quirky indie experience to look elsewhere. There are many better indie films that need supporting.