Family Weekend

Initially you want to feel sorry for the lead character Emily but then as I kept watching I realised the whole family are just as selfish as each other. They all have their own interests and ignore each other. That being said, as the movie progresses you start to see the deep underlying issues of each character and you truly realise how much of a dysfunctional family they have become. Their issues run far too deep to be fixed in one enlightened moment. Funnily this movie is so much more than you could have imagined. It's weird and crazy, traumatic and depressing but through it all they get there. So while it started out strange it developed into a really decent movie that I'm glad I watched.

First, kudos to Matt K. Turner who created this wonderful group of characters. The film opens with everything pristine white, neat and orderly. It is an ideal household on the surface. This world quickly falls apart as we discover the family has drifted apart. The family cast of characters: Dad (Matthew Modine) is a has-been artist. He smokes pot and sleeps a lot. He is a 60's hippie type. Mom (Kristin Chenoweth) is the family bread winner. She is a workaholic and the least likeable of the family. Emily (Olesya Rulin) is the centerpiece to this tale. She jumps rope competitively and would love some family support. Jack (Eddie Hassell) is the older son who describes himself as a "raging homosexual." He makes short features for the Internet and wants to be called "Thor." Lucy (Joey King) is my favorite. She loves movies and fancies herself an actress. When we first meet her she has immersed herself into "Iris" the child prostitute from "Taxi." Mickey (Robbie Tucker) is the introverted young son who memorizes every spoken word. No one ever questions his memory. Grandma Gale or GG (Shirley Jones) is The father's mother and doesn't get along with his wife. She is somewhat New Age in this film. When everyone in the family missed Emily's semi-final jump rope competition she is upset and devises an over the top plan to force her parents to act like parents. I was laughing out loud over the antics and at Lucy. Joey King was fantastic as she assumed multiple film roles, none of which any parent would allow a nine year old to watch. At the end, the film then shifts to heart warming mode as do most indie comedies. Parental Guide: 1 f-bomb, no sex or nudity. Sex talk.

It's not the first movie to turn a "hostile" situation into a funny one. But it still is able to remain kind of sweet and almost innocent. Obviously a few factors come into play that other movies were not able to use (the internet) and some other stuff. There are some interesting influences coming from outside the family circle (friends, co-workers and more). The movie is funny, but has some logic issues. Then again, if you really buy into the movie (with its flaws) you will be able to enjoy a funny movie, that goes a bit dark (the young sister channeling some classic movies), but never loses the viewer with any sort of violence. For all its "dark" moments, it still might feel a bit too neat for some in the end, but it does pull the whole thing off

And what should family mean? No family is "perfect." We have hard times that can change the coarse of life. Family is love. In it's own twisted way sometimes. Family Weekend shows us that we, as a family, can fall apart really fast and never notice. That we can say things to siblings that can be really hurtful and never give a second thought. The point is to all ways come back no matter what. Because no one is perfect but it's up to us to make a difference in ones life. Family Weekend shows us that sometimes we have to go the extra mile to prove that someone is wrong and that we ether have to "fix" it or "save" it no matter what the costs. We have to accept the card we've been dealt even if that means some screaming and mental pain for a couple days. Because we have to stick it out. Because if we don't...what would family really be? I highly suggest this movie for anyone who has had family problems or is going through them. It's an encouragement in it's own way.

I found this on Netflix streaming movies. I watched it on a rainy morning just to kill time, expecting it to be a "dumb" comedy but came away somewhat amazed how good it is. Each role is acted just right and the situations are always surprising and interesting. This is a nice little gem of a movie. A movie like this thrives or dies on the lead role, and Olesya Rulin is just perfect as 16-yr-old Emily, even though the actress is in her mid-20s. Tiny at 5 feet tall, and with a youthful face and big eyes like Zooey Deschanel, her acting style fits the part. Emily is an organized person and as the movie starts she is getting ready to compete in the sport that is her passion, solo speed jump rope. She places first at the regional, in her home area in Michigan, but in spite of the post-it note reminders she left for her mom, her dad, her sister, and her two brothers, none of her family showed up to see her compete. Most 16-yr-olds would just mope, maybe take drugs, maybe tell everyone how uncaring her family is, but Emily is not your usual 16-yr-old. She decides an intervention is called for so she prepares an evening meal, forces each family member to sit at the table, then spikes the wine of her parents. When they pass out she does the only sensible thing, she ties them to chairs, making them her prisoners until they can all get a better understanding and commitment to making their family work better as a unit. Kristin Chenoweth is the hard-working, driven business woman Samantha. Matthew Modine is the hippy-dippy artist Duncan who has his studio upstairs in the home. Emily's younger sister is Joey King as Lucy, who is always dressing up as some movie character, but she is delightful. For me it was fun seeing one of my favorites from an earlier generation, Shirley Jones as the grandma, "GG ". This is a very funny comedy with novel writing, but it also has a good core of a message, that family members listening to each other and doing important things together matters.

This movie is something you had wish you could or would have done with your family if you had/have the opportunity to. This movie is a light comedy which can be pictured as both sensible and irrational at the same time.There were some parts that seemed a bit off like the kid acting like a prostitute but oh well this movie had a very simplistic and pure hearted concept.In this day and age such type of comedies are hard to come by.In my opinion this movie deserves better than a 4.6/10 I had say 7.5 would be a correct rating instead especially when movies like the Incredible Burt Wonderstone which are such big disappointing scripts get 6/10 this movie deserves a better rating.The acting was integrated quite good.

source: Family Weekend

First, kudos to Matt K. Turner who created this wonderful group of characters. The film opens with everything pristine white, neat and orderly. It is an ideal household on the surface. This world quickly falls apart as we discover the family has drifted apart. The family cast of characters: Dad (Matthew Modine) is a has-been artist. He smokes pot and sleeps a lot. He is a 60's hippie type. Mom (Kristin Chenoweth) is the family bread winner. She is a workaholic and the least likeable of the family. Emily (Olesya Rulin) is the centerpiece to this tale. She jumps rope competitively and would love some family support. Jack (Eddie Hassell) is the older son who describes himself as a "raging homosexual." He makes short features for the Internet and wants to be called "Thor." Lucy (Joey King) is my favorite. She loves movies and fancies herself an actress. When we first meet her she has immersed herself into "Iris" the child prostitute from "Taxi." Mickey (Robbie Tucker) is the introverted young son who memorizes every spoken word. No one ever questions his memory. Grandma Gale or GG (Shirley Jones) is The father's mother and doesn't get along with his wife. She is somewhat New Age in this film. When everyone in the family missed Emily's semi-final jump rope competition she is upset and devises an over the top plan to force her parents to act like parents. I was laughing out loud over the antics and at Lucy. Joey King was fantastic as she assumed multiple film roles, none of which any parent would allow a nine year old to watch. At the end, the film then shifts to heart warming mode as do most indie comedies. Parental Guide: 1 f-bomb, no sex or nudity. Sex talk.

The Review: Teenage-life is full of highs and lows-especially for females. Girls we have all been there. Persistence of hormonal episodes including; tantrums, selfishness and alterations of personality may put some strain on the family home from time to time. 'Family Weekend' elicits this strain through the character, Emily Smith, role-played perfectly by Olesya Rulin, she is a hugely competitive and strong-minded teenager who speculates her parent's roles and determines to change their parenting style-claiming it is simply not good enough and teaches them a lesson. 'Family Weekend' has a very straight forward plot; Emily Smith, an energetic and dedicated sporting champion, who practices daily, wins the Rope-Jumping Championship. As she is awarded the trophy, she scans the crowd and realises her parents have not attended. She immediately deems the situation to be a result of bad parenting due to them not having believed in her passion for sport. She decides to confront them about the importance of this achievement in her life. She begins the confrontation with: "Where were you both at 3.30 today"? This is just one of the lines where she seems to put her parents into grovelling situations, some where they are detained speechless. Her parent's react rather relaxed and hope to shake the discerning situation affecting their parenting off by simply claiming they had 'work commitments'. At this point, Emily bribes her younger siblings and her elder brother ,who pretends to be homosexual, into tying the parents up to chairs and holding them hostage to teach them a lesson about parenting. During the 24hour hostage, the mother's boyfriend arrives at the house. A younger sibling lets him in. Emily smacks him over the head with an object near to her and he is knocked out unconscious- this was caught on one of the younger siblings phone-camera and uploaded to Youtube, which seemed funny at the time. "Emily Darling, I think it's time to loosen the ropes and listen as a family". This line construed several interpretations in my mind. Loosen the rope or loosen the controllability?. Irony springs to mind here. More about Emily and her frightful attitude is learnt as the film continues which leaves her in a tricky situation at the very end which makes her realise that parents aren't all perfect and the 'knitty gritty' of being in trouble and having to be 'bailed out' , quite literally, peels the wool away from her eyes. If you enjoy films where the protagonist summons a reality check and ones with 'happy family' endings then this film may be right for you. Though give it half an hour, it takes a while to get into. Reviewed By: Rachael Gilbert Join the debate on our Facebook Group (www.facebook.com/groups/Filmsploitation) or on our website (www.thefilmpodcast.co.uk)

Initially you want to feel sorry for the lead character Emily but then as I kept watching I realised the whole family are just as selfish as each other. They all have their own interests and ignore each other. That being said, as the movie progresses you start to see the deep underlying issues of each character and you truly realise how much of a dysfunctional family they have become. Their issues run far too deep to be fixed in one enlightened moment. Funnily this movie is so much more than you could have imagined. It's weird and crazy, traumatic and depressing but through it all they get there. So while it started out strange it developed into a really decent movie that I'm glad I watched.