Tumbledown

I don't know how badly Jason Sudeikis wants to be this generations' Tom Hanks, but Tumbledown has him heading in the right direction. In this RomCom, Sudeikis plays a lit professor writing a book on folk music with a dead folk singer who had one amazing album being his focus, but his widow, played by Rebecca Hall does not trust him to do her late husband justice. I watched Sudeikis on Saturday Night Live and thought he was funny, but this movie also shows how charming he can be. He's also not a bad looking guy. In fact, it looks like he shed a few pounds in this flick, don't know if it was particularly for this movie, but it does add something to his charisma of playing a upbeat lover of music, who can drop a Biggie reference as easily as he can drop a Bob Dylan reference. I'm saying a lot about Sudeikis, even though Tumbledown's Plot revolves more around the widow of the dead folk singer, played by Rebecca Hall. Hall's performance did not stand out for me, which is unfortunate. Not that Sudeikis was not playing just another RomCom stereotype, but what he brought to the table shined pretty bright. Give a honorable mention to Joe Manganiello and Blythe Danner who had some funner one-liners and zingers that added flavor to the movie. I'm not a Romcom man, but if you are, this is a good one.

This nearly 2 hours movie is a waste of time : Right from the start, you guess the ending but for endless, boring 120 minutes, nothing happens : no moving dialogues, no gripping scene, no key moment ! If you expect to discover the fun of book research, fandom, you fall flat ! If you expect to be gripped by the beautiful nature, this Maine in winter is cold, desert and muddy ! This Sudeikis guy is a poor guy with no talent and totally irritating with his bad jokes, bad temper ! And honestly, i can't stand stories of lovers who are already committed and just because they met someone else a day, they are now in a great romance with their soulmate ! It's totally rubbish, stupid and imagined by people who has never met love ! Here the split is totally inappropriate as the movie implies that because his girlfriend has drunk in a party, she is a drunkard ! So it's really too much and i never buy just a second that Rebecca falls in love ! So except watching Rebecca wearing winter fashion, there is nothing else in this movie and i can't watch it one more time for sure !

"You're the one obsessed with death. My Hunter was obsessed with life." Hannah (Hall) is trying to cope with the death of her husband, and popular singer. She spends her life living in the past and trying everything to keep his memory alive. When Andrew (Sudeikis) shows up wanting to write a book about him he is met with resistance from Hannah. Little by little the more they talk they more they realize they both have something that will help the other one. This is a very good movie that is worth watching, but it also a tad bit generic and cookie cutter like. Most romantic comedies are though so going in I expected that. Sudeikis is great and funny as always, even though this is more serious than we are used to from him. In terms of romantic movies this is one that men will like, maybe more than women. Overall, a movie that I did like but was almost a little too cookie cutter like to be considered original. I give this a B-.

This movie is terrible. It is about dealing with the loss of a loved one, and how to move on. At least that is what the viewer is expecting. The plot is thin, the character played by Rebecca Hall may be the most annoying, egoistic and rude character in the history of film, and the attempt to making a decent "bring it home" ending solution at the final seconds makes this the worst movie I have seen this year so far. The only reason to why I rated this movie 3 is due to Jason Sudiekis, who at least tries to give life to the movie. As I have a tendency to always completing each movie, I hope I will never have to endure something like this again. Ever.

Reviewing a Nicholas Sparks'-related film is not a happy assignment because of its near-guarantee of maudlin, tear jerking sentiment. Hooray! Because Tumbledown is the anti-Sparks romance, nothing to do with his weepers, in fact a hard-nosed but sympathetic study of Hannah's (Rebecca Hall) writing a biography of her notably- accomplished folk-singer, late husband's short life. Although this summary might seem Sparksean, it is not that at all. Perhaps the innocence and originality of the production comes from its freshman director, Sean Mewshaw and his collaborating writer, his wife, Desiree Van Til. Both are gifted and devoid of the penchant for cliché so dominant in other romances. This realist-oriented romance finds Hannah struggling with her writing and her business-associate, a college professor, Andrew (Jason Sudekis). Although a certain element of formula must be present as she insults him regularly (a sure sign they will fall in love), it is 90 min before they kiss—another Hooray! During this first 2/3, most of the dialogue is rapid and sardonic, a sweetness to my word-addicted ears. Moments occur in this dialogue-driven segment when I am reminded of the early 20th century love of screwball comedic repartee. The rapid fire insults and witticism are nectar to those of us who have grown up on Jud Apatow's romcoms potty humor and pratfalls. While Tumbledown has its moments of pratfalls and excessive dialogue, overall it is balm for the ears, and, given the attractiveness of Hall and Sudekis, a sight for sore eyes. Because I lived for a year in Northern Maine, I must laud the picture's artists for capturing small town Maine life without parodying its apparent narrowness and gruffness. A warm interior lies at the center of the outwardly hostile natives; it's a warm interior that catches heat from the ubiquitous fireplaces (we had wood stoves). Visitors from the city like Andrew and his girlfriend, Finley (Dianna Agron), may just never qualify for residency the way Hannah does.

'TUMBLEDOWN': Four Stars (Out of Five) Indie rom-com/drama flick; starring Rebecca Hall and Jason Sudeikis. The film tells the story of a widow, still coping with the death of her folk singer husband, who must deal with a New York writer; that comes to her small town looking to write a story on him. The movie also costars Dianna Agron, Joe Manganiello, Griffin Dunne, Blythe Danner and Richard Masur. It was directed by first-time feature filmmaker Sean Mewshaw, and written by Mewshaw and Desi and Desiree Van Til (both first-time screenwriters). I enjoyed it. Hannah Miles (Hall) is still grieving over the death of her husband; a folk singer, who was somewhat of a celebrity in her rural Maine town. Her family, and friends, all think she needs to get over him and move on. That troubled healing is further aggravated, when a New York writer, named Andrew McCabe (Sudeikis), comes to town investigating the beloved musician's death. He's writing a book on the singer, and Hannah doesn't like the idea of it (at all). I'm becoming a bigger Jason Sudeikis fan, with every movie he does! He's always funny, and he always picks quality projects too; the roles, he plays, always seem like real and relatable people. This film is no exception. I also like how he does a lot of lower-budget indie flicks too. Hall is great in this movie as well. She's definitely not as funny, but her performance is topnotch; and the two have beautiful chemistry together. It's yet another indie hit win, for Jason Sudeikis! Watch our movie review show 'MOVIE TALK' at: https://youtu.be/n2qWxeZ0Tck

This film was so boring! I am a big fan of Jason Sudeikis,Dianna Agron, Blythe Danner and of course Joe Manganiello who appears at the top of the cast list and is barely in the film. I have never been a fan of Rebecca Hall, i find her very unattractive and difficult to watch any film with her in it. How does she land these roles? In trivia it stated Rose Byrne was supposed to play the lead and pulled out.. smart move. This movie is so damn boring, no chemistry between Jason and Rebecca at all. As if he would leave the beautiful Dianna for Rebecca! There is no real plot, you don't even really know what happened to her husband. Stupid film!!! A waste of time, i kept waiting for it to get better and then it ended.

Greetings again from the darkness. If I find myself three minutes into a movie and have already executed a couple of eye-rolls, any hopes for a decent little Romantic-Comedy-Drama would ordinarily be dashed. However, having Rebecca Hall's character narrate her writing efforts as she taps away on the keyboard, actually does serve the story. The first feature from director Sean Mewshaw and his screen writing wife Desiree Van Til takes advantage of a beautiful setting, a slew of contrasts, and some heartfelt music to keep us interested in how things plays out. Ms. Hall plays Hannah, the grieving young widow who has stashed herself away in a lakefront cabin located in the rural Maine community in which she was raised. Her grief remains burdensome some two years after the tragic death of her husband Hunter Miles – a folk singer whose only album (and subsequent death) created a public mystique and a defensiveness on the part of Hannah to protect and control his legacy. As a Ph.D from Brown, periodic contributor to the local newspaper, and soul mate of Hunter, Hannah undertakes the writing of his biography in the shadow of the studio monument that continues to expand with trinkets left at his gravesite by a cult of fans paying respect. Griffin Dunne plays her friend and owner of the local bookstore and publisher of the newspaper. His less than enthusiastic critique of her early pages of the biography correspond with the vigorous pursuit by a Hofstra Pop Culture Professor with a book publishing deal who wants to make Hunter a key element of his new project. Jason Sudeikis plays Andrew, and his fast-talking big city mannerisms don't initially mesh so well with the hyper-sensitive and protective grieving widow. The two spar like brother and sister, and the initial adversarial relationship means only one thing in the movie world … romance is in the air. Fortunately, the focus on telling the story of Hunter acts as a form of grief therapy for Hannah and a bit of redemption of spirit for Andrew. Of course, the path to enlightenment is not simple for either. Hannah's "friend with benefits" is a hunky local power company worker played by Joe Manganiello ("True Blood"), and Andrew's big city music industry girlfriend is played by Dianna Agron ("Glee"). But as you would expect, the biggest obstacle faced by the two leads is their own stubbornness. We learn the most about Andrew and Hannah when they are around others. An Easter luncheon with Hannah's family is especially insightful. Her parents are played by Blythe Danner and Richard Masur, and as viewers we long for more scenes featuring these two characters (and terrific actors). We sense that these parents see right through Andrew and Hannah. Can Hannah let down her guard so that she can move on with life? Can Andrew quell his ambition so that the emotional connection takes place? Beautifully shot (with British Columbia substituting for Maine), the aspect of nature plays a role in contrasting country girl with city boy, and it's the accidental discovery of a long lost song that highlights the stark difference in motives … while also being the impetus for change. Hunter's original music is heard throughout the film, and it's actually Damien Jurado whose singing and songwriting add an element of intrigue and realism. Hannah, as narrator, states "In the middle, we feel like it's never going to end." While that may be true for many romance movies, the filmmakers here avoid the "too cute" moments that spoil most in this genre … and impressively overcome those early eye-rolls.

If you want to take a little nap and need to fall asleep quickly - just start this movie and be assured you will tumbledown into sleepy head rest. This story of the widowed Hannah living her secluded life in the back country of Maine is so slow and boring and lifeless you will join them in their lethargic existence and your nap will be upon you quickly. The poor grieving widow Hannah certainly has no trouble getting 'it' from the horny local power company worker who always shows up with a little gift in exchange for 'it'. Then Andrew shows up and the story aptly tumbles-down from that point on. Even Blythe Danner can't keep this story or movie awake! To be more than honest, yes I did fall asleep watching this one hour and forty-five minute flick, and I wasn't remotely sleepy when I started watching. Neither am I compelled to watch it again because it's just so boring. Just another example of a big budget flop with the actors walking through their parts because they seemed equally bored and obviously did it for the money.

I was pleasantly and unexpectedly surprised by this movie. I found it a realistic portrayal of how hard it is to let go of the memory of deep love that is now gone and learning how to move on and sometimes failing and falling down, until suddenly you wake up and life unexpectedly opens up to something new and wonderful. I am surprised by the negative reviews. It is not a romantic comedy or a typical slick, fast paced Hollywood film. But it works as a touching, authentic slice of a life, portraying what loss really looks like and the beauty of love. The music was also really fantastic. A touching little gem.