A Beginner's Guide to Endings (2010)

Upon learning they only have a few days left to live, three brothers set off to reverse a lifetime of mistakes.

Director:

Jonathan Sobol

Writer:

Jonathan Sobol (screenplay)

Stars:

Tricia Helfer, J.K. Simmons, Scott Caan

3 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Credited cast:
Tricia Helfer	...	Miranda
J.K. Simmons	...	Uncle Pal
Scott Caan	...	Cal White
Harvey Keitel	...	Duke White
Jared Keeso	...	Juicebox
Paulo Costanzo	...	Jacob 'Cob' White
Wendy Crewson	...	Goldie White
Jason Jones	...	Edward 'Nuts' White Jr.
Allison Graham	...	Waitress
Jesse Bostick	...	Tourist
James Preston Rogers	...	Big Mitch
Siam Yu	...	Todd White
Alex Appel	...	Mindy
Gavin Fox	...	Rahm the Baptist
Thomas Michael	...	Ivan

Storyline

Upon learning they only have a few days left to live, three brothers set off to reverse a lifetime of mistakes.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language including some sexual references

Details

Country:

USA Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

April 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

Guia Para Acabar em Grande

Filming Locations:

Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Complete Post Accounting, Darius Films, Harold Greenberg Fund, The

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Quotes

[Nuts laments to his brother Cal after recently finding out he and two of his brothers will soon die due to their father Duke's poor parenting choices]
Cal White: Duke dealt us a bad hand, bro.
Edward 'Nuts' White Jr.: A bad hand? I didn't even get cards, okay? I got like a bus transfer and fucking coupon for tampons.

User Reviews

A comedy as funny as it is improbable.

A favorite movie of mine, Magnolia, is introduced with a narrator talking about odds and the unlikelihood of certain things happening and A Beginner's Guide to Endings starts in a very similar fashion. The credits for this Jonathon Sobol film are cleverly presented as parts of games of chance and from the outset there is that feeling that unlikely things are going to happen and this will be an unpredictable and unusual comedy. The Beginner's Guide was one of more than a dozen options available at the Domestic Arrivals Film Festival in London Ontario and it is one that I almost missed. When so many quality films are offered in such a short time frame sometimes difficult choices have to be made. This film was one of the best decisions I made and everything about it impressed me. The award winning screenplay gave the ensemble cast plenty of material to work with and their performances were all pitch perfect.

J.K. Simmons serves as an adviser to the White brothers, a family so dysfunctional that they could lower the property values in any neighborhood they chose to call home. Siam Yu manages to deliver up some laughs as a very credible Todd, the youngest product of Duke White's many misadventures. While Harvey Keitel doesn't need a lot of screen time as the Duke White character his presence is felt throughout the full 92 minutes. Any casting changes would have made this a different film and it likely wouldn't have been a better different. Everybody needed to be who they were to make it work as well as it did. The shooting locations in Niagara Falls are very familiar to most people, but because of the close proximity to London there may have been a stronger connection for the audience here. This isn't a film for everyone but it is one that l will go out of my way to see again.