Review of The Boys Are Back (2009) by Lindsay H — 07 Feb 2010
The Boys Are Back is an impressive drama (based on what I'm told is a terrific novel from author Simon Carr) focusing on British sports writer Clive Owen who suffers the greatest tragedy of losing his Australian wife to cancer.
Now, he's a single parent in the Outback who strives to reconnect with his very young son (Nicholas McAnulty, a fantastic young child in his debut role in a film) who he's been a bit estranged from.
Learning to adapt alongside him, the two attempt to live life up and without rules. Adding to the drama is the emergence of Owen's first son (George MacKay, another astounding young actor) from a previous marriage.
Owen attempts to reconnect with both kids and introduce them to a brotherly relationship they never had before, all while trying to balance his fast-paced work life and friendship to school mother Emma Booth (in a good role for her, since we only saw a tiny portion of her talents in Blood Creek).
Having not read the novel, I have to go by the movie's own merit, though after watching this, I can't wait to get my hands on the book. This film is a nice change of pace for me. Wonderfully heartwarming and heart wrenching all at once.
The film is highlighted by great performances all around, especially Owen and the two kids. Good direction from Scott Hicks, who first made his mark with the amazing film Shine, but also delivered the horrid No Reservations (sorry folks, too chick flicky for me).
Overall, a surprisingly nice treat for me.
This review of The Boys Are Back (2009) was written by Lindsay H on 07 Feb 2010.
The Boys Are Back has generally received positive reviews.
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