Everybody’s Fine Movie Review

Writer-director Kirk Jones tackles the story of a dysfunctional family figuring their way out of secrecy and loss to find happiness. Jones remakes the famous Italian hit by Giuseppe Tornatore “Stanno tutti Bene”.

Playing the lead role if Robert de Niro who takes on Frank, a blue collar worker who spent most of his time working than nurturing his relationship with his children. However when his wife dies, he decides to rekindle the family relationship by planning a timely Christmas family reunion. However, one by one they send their regrets that they can’t come for none of them is comfortable with their father who knew little of them. Since they can’t come to him, he chooses to take a cross-country journey to visit them individually. In his first trip to New York City to visit his artist son David, he is greeted by an empty apartment. Then he heads off to Chicago for busy wife and mother Amy (Kate Beckinsale), free spirit waitress Rosie (Drew Barrymore) in Las Vegas, and talented orchestra musician Robert (Sam Rockwell) in Denver.

For each visit he is met with disappointment and comes to the realization that he has never played the father figure for his children. His children still keep hiding something from their father. As he continues the journey, he struggles to bridge the distance between him and his children before everything truly becomes too late.

This is probably one of Robert de Niro’s best works to date. He reminds us how gifted a character he is by authentically and genuinely embracing the character of Frank. You could feel an emotional connectedness to the character thanks to his heartfelt and convincing performance. If Clooney wasn’t cast in this role, this movie would have turned up a flop.

Of the grown kids, Rockwell makes the greatest performance by depicting a man who realizes he can never be what his dad wants him to be. It is a performance most of the audience could relate to thanks to his acting prowess. His scene became the turning point of the film.

However unlike Rockwell, Beckinsale and Barrymore deliver more controlled performance that doesn’t leave much of a mark to viewers.