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Over the past few years there have been romantic-comedies that have proved that they aren't those soppy love stories that we see today but because they received critical acclaim and that they have added something more personal to them to make them more successful (Little Miss Sunshine and Juno are other examples). They all bring out something new that we hadn't seen or experienced before and sends a different message every time. The message that The Kids Are All Right sends out for me is that just because there is a homosexual couple as parents, that doesn't mean they aren't suitable parents! As long as they are there for their children, then that's what counts.
What my thoughts were of The Kids Are All Right is that it isn't your ordinary romantic-comedy that you see on a regular basis and for that reason amongst others, I absolutely loved it! Despite the fact it has been named a romantic-comedy, I would call it more of a romantic-drama seeing as it involves a lesbian couple and children and it takes you onto a personal level that you don't really experience very often. I mean, yeah there have been films about homosexuals portrayed by heterosexual actors but I think this might be the first film I have come across that has involved that and children.
In LA, Nic and Jules are a couple with a daughter, Joni (Nic is biological mother), on her way to college and a son, Laser (Jules is biological mother), at 15 a good athlete but maybe hanging out with the wrong pal. Laser wants Joni, who's now 18, to find out who their biological father is - a sperm donor. Without initially telling their moms, they meet him. He's Paul, a cool guy with a motorcycle, a restaurant, and an organic garden. Although Nic doesn't like the idea, the five of them get together a few times and the kids spend time with Paul. He hires Jules, who's had many brief vocations, to landscape his back yard, and Nic, who's an OB/GYN, decides to be a good sport and get to know Paul better. Can a family add a new member?
An absolutely fantastic cast! I have always admired Annette Bening for her selection of films to be part of and I am really glad she was in this one too. I loved her as Carolyn Burnham in American Beauty 11 years ago and I have to admit, her performance in The Kids Are All Right isn't that far from being as brilliant as American Beauty. I think the main reason why I loved Annette in this film was because I think she showed real determination towards the film and wanted to bring out something to show the world. I mean, most heterosexual actors who portray homosexuals do that but Annette probably did it the best. She needs that Academy Award nomination but she has to battle with favourite to win Natalie Portman in Black Swan. Pretty sure she will win the Golden Globe though. Mark Ruffalo is a very underrated actor for me and I really liked him in this one as Paul so he deserves an Oscar nomination too. I did like Julianne Moore as well but not quite worthy of an Oscar nomination. Two young famous individuals Josh Hutcherson and Mia Wasikowska were pretty awesome as well as Laser and Joni. It should earn young actor awards but not contenders of any of the big awards.
In most romantic-comedies that are Oscar contenders, we usually see a breakthrough or a great debut directorial performance; like Jason Reitman with Juno. Plus, it is another example that goes to show that there are some other fantastic female directors as well, not just the male ones. For me, it should earn 4 Academy Award nominations: Best Picture 2010, Best Leading Actress (Annette Bening), Best Supporting Actor (Mark Ruffalo) and Best Original Screenplay (your usual rom-com/drama nominations). It should win Best Picture Musical/Comedy at the Golden Globes too as should Annette Bening for Best Actress Musical/Comedy (probably firm seal for her like Meryl Streep in Julie & Julia last year).
Overall, The Kids Are All Right is an absolutely fantastic film that is more of a drama than a comedy. Fantastic cast, fantastic performance, fantastic directing and fantastic script so deserves all the credit and universal acclaim it got. It is definitely one of the best films of 2010 and would take a damn amazing film to be better than this one.
