The Upside of Anger (2005)

User Rating:

7.0/10   

Director:

Mike Binder

Writer (WGA):

Mike Binder (written by)

Release Date:

1 April 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Comedy | Romance

Tagline:

Sometimes what tears us apart helps us put it back together

Plot:

When her husband unexpectedly disappears, a sharp-witted suburban wife and her daughters juggle their mom's romantic dilemmas and family dynamics.

Plot Keywords:

Neighbor | Sister Sister Relationship | Bathroom | Mother Daughter Relationship | Dinner

Awards:

5 wins & 7 nominations

Cast

Joan Allen	...	Terry Ann Wolfmeyer
Kevin Costner	...	Denny Davies
Erika Christensen	...	Andy Wolfmeyer
Keri Russell	...	Emily Wolfmeyer
Alicia Witt	...	Hadley Wolfmeyer
Evan Rachel Wood	...	Lavender 'Popeye' Wolfmeyer
Mike Binder	...	Adam 'Shep' Goodman
Tom Harper	...	David Junior
Dane Christensen	...	Gorden Reiner
Danny Webb	...	Grey Wolfmeyer
Magdalena Manville	...	Darlene
Suzanne Bertish	...	Gina
David Firth	...	David Senior
Rod Woodruff	...	Dean Reiner (as Roderick P. Woodruff)
Stephen Greif	...	Emily's Doctor

Also Known As:

An deiner Schulter (Germany)

MPAA:

Rated R for language, sexual situations, brief comic violence and some drug use.

Runtime:

USA:118 min

Country:

USA | Germany | UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Sweden:7 | Singapore:M18 (DVD rating) | Singapore:NC-16 (original rating) | France:U | Belgium:KT | Argentina:13 | Ireland:15A | Iceland:12 | UK:15 | South Korea:15 | Australia:M | Brazil:14 | Hong Kong:IIB | Netherlands:12 | USA:R | Germany:12 | Canada:14A | Finland:K-11

Filming Locations:

Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA

Company:

Media 8 Entertainment

Trivia:

Kevin Costner gained 20 pounds for his role.

Goofs:

Continuity: When they toast Hadley, the fruit wedge on the glass of Terry's bloody Mary changes from a lime to a lemon between shots

Quotes:

Hadley Wolfmeyer: There's something you all should know.
Lavender "Popeye" Wolfmeyer: You're pregnant and you're getting married.
Hadley Wolfmeyer: How did you know that? Who told you that?
Lavender "Popeye" Wolfmeyer: I guessed? Really? I guessed that? I was right?
Terry Wolfmeyer: No, you've got to be kidding me.
Hadley Wolfmeyer: No, I'm... I'm not. I'm getting married.
Terry Wolfmeyer: This is how I find out? Through Popeye? A 15-year-old?
Lavender "Popeye" Wolfmeyer: Don't be condescending...
Terry Wolfmeyer: Close it! You are a child. What do *you* know?
Andy Wolfmeyer: Oh, that old chestnut.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Features The Screaming Skull (1958)

Soundtrack:

Canon

One of the best to come out in 2005 so far.

Once every so often a movie comes along that hits all the right notes with its audience. It has just the right amount of each element that makes a great film and then kicks it up a notch with more.

Mike Binder has done all this with his new film, The Upside of Anger. Upside of Anger opens at a scene from the end of a movie; a scene that stays in the audience's mind, making us trying to guess its cause all the way through the movie. We meet Terry Wolfmeyer, a middle aged woman with four daughters who is trying to keep their and her own life in balance. Terry's husband has just recently left the family causing Terry to spiral into alcohol and bitterness. Along comes Denny Davies, an ex-baseball player, current radio show host, and Terry's neighbor. He too, is a fan of the drink, and strikes a friendship with Terry along with a fatherly role for her daughters. At its root, it's Terry's story about how she deals with the continuous growing of her relationships, of her daughters, and of herself.

Mike Binder, the writer and director, has a great way of showing the lives of all his characters. He is able to make this movie just as life really is; its funny, depressing, uplifting, bittersweet, and sometimes tragic. He seems to be able to capture real life on camera and display it with all its truth and realism. The writing is completely intelligent, hilarious writing is mixed with scenes of great emotion. Binder never relies on action or dialogue that will cue laughter or tears; it comes naturally through the writing. It works differently for every person in the audience.

Joan Allen is fabulous as the angry mother, Terry. Her performance contains each the real emotion of a mother with all that she is dealing with. She plays it with vigor that strikes that fear in us that we all know mothers can emit, but we also see her lighter funny side. Kevin Costner does very well as Denny, who, surprise surprise, is a baseball player. His performance is hilarious as the washed up player who beams an empathetic hippie attitude. Costner, in his first good and well-written role in a while, is a relief to have. Also hilarious is Director, Mike Bender's Shep, Denny's radio show producer. The four daughters also add four different personalities to the family that interact very nicely.

The Upside of Anger is a wonderfully acted movie, and what's more, it is superbly written. It captures a true essence of family life. And, while its hilarious, it's a refreshing kind of humor that is very mature and not based on the stupidity that many people think we want to see. Mike Binder is successful at making a movie about the characters and about life that actually does a good job at representing both things. Upside of Anger gets 5 stars (out of 5)