Limacher Low Down: The Kids Are All Right gives a greater insight to the nuclear family of the 21st Century, or at least that was the attempt. The movie tried to blend a good mix of comedy and drama, but it didn’t come across that way – in fact, to me, it was more like a tale of two movies. Sure, it had funny parts, but by the time the credits started rolling I was left pondering what the fuck was THAT? The movie had this great build up only to let me down more than when they opened Al Capone’s Vault! (Anyone remember that?) The acting was good; the story helped define the characters, but there was something about how it ended that just makes me wonder . . . why?
The Kids Are All Right begins with us meeting the family, the Lesbian Couple of Nic (Anette Benning) and Jules (Julianne Moore) and their two kids Joni (Mia Wasikowska) and Laser (Josh Hutcherson). Yes, Laser. We quickly learn that much like every family they all have their quirks, but they stick together through everything. Laser wants to learn the identity of the man who donated the sperm that his mother, Jules, was inseminated with. It just so happens that Nic was inseminated with the same donor’s sperm a few years before to have Joni. Joni being 18 is of legal age to attempt to locate the man, but is reluctant to at first. Enter Paul (Mark Ruffalo) who is a successful small business owner and somewhat of a womanizer as well. Paul receives a call from the sperm bank and agrees to talk to the person who is seeking him out.
Joni quickly calls Paul and sets up a meeting for Laser and herself to their potential father. The cliche questions from the test-tube children get asked, and there are a few awkward moments between the kids and their donor father. The kids quickly start to enjoy the company, but agree that their moms can NEVER find out. Guess what? After a unique scene between the mothers and son, the moms find out that Joni and Laser actually met Paul. The moms agree that they too want to meet Paul and see the man whose sperm they used to have their children – insert obvious turkey baster dinner humor here.
The family all convenes and we learn more about each person from one of the more humorous scenes in the movie. Nic seems to be more reserved about Paul, but Jules really takes to him and that leads us into the roller coaster that is the rest of the film. The story takes a turn when Jules, who has just started her own landscaping architecture company, agrees to come and work on Paul’s recently acquired house. One thing leads to another and Paul and Jules become attracted to each other and start a torrid love affair that no one knows about. This all seems to beg the question of “when did this turn into ‘Chasing Amy’?”
And, all that leads to the end of the film where all the possible questions could be answered, but still left me frustrated and wondering why the film-makers built such a strong foundation only to have everything collapse at the end. I enjoyed the first half of the movie and then got really let down with the conclusion. I will say that the movie had a great amount of upside, and the trailer really grabbed my attention and made me want to see this but at the end of the movie I was just left questioning so many aspects. The humor came quick and dies out way too soon, and the drama seemed a little over the top at times as well. The movie might be great for some, but not for all and I fit in with the latter!
