Review of This Is Where I Leave You (2014) by David P — 31 Oct 2014

With a stellar cast of comedians, the likes of Jason Bateman, Tina Fey, Jane Fonda and Kathryn Hahn, I knew I had to see this movie. Problem is, it's not overly funny. It feels like these comic genius' are put on a leash and forced into more dramatic performances. And although there are plenty of jokes, everything is dulled down.

But as soon as you are willing to accept this fact, the film is a actually quite good. When mother, Hilary Altman (Jane Fonda) forces all her adult children to live under the same roof together for a week, as per their father's dying wish, many people will relate to the disfunctionality in this family. The bickering between everybody is fantastic. It's funny, with all these comedians on the roster, they leave it mostly up to Adam Driver's character, Philip to deliver most of the laughs. And he's ok, again some of the deliveries are a bit bland but that's probably a directing choice.

With even more big names showing up as Tina Fey's ex, Timothy Olyphant, or Jason Bateman's new fling, the lovely Rose Byrne there's a lot to like in this film, but sadly I feel like it is one that will be forgotten quite easily. There ends up being way too many stories going on at the one time with all these characters and none of them get the attention that is needed to really flesh them out. There is no need to see this in theatres, it will make for a great DVD watch.

3/5.

'Shove a baby up there!' - Annie Altman.