Another Happy Day (2011)

A wedding at her parents' Annapolis estate hurls high-strung Lynn into the center of touchy family dynamics.

Director:

Sam Levinson

Writer:

Sam Levinson

Stars:

Ellen Barkin, Ezra Miller, Ellen Burstyn

2 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ellen Barkin	...	Lynn
Ezra Miller	...	Elliot
Ellen Burstyn	...	Doris Baker
Demi Moore	...	Patty
Thomas Haden Church	...	Paul
Kate Bosworth	...	Alice
George Kennedy	...	Joe Baker
Jeffrey DeMunn	...	Lee
Daniel Yelsky	...	Ben
Siobhan Fallon	...	Bonnie (as Siobhan Fallon Hogan)
Diana Scarwid	...	Donna
Eamon O'Rourke	...	Brandon
Lola Kirke	...	Charlie
David Hirsch	...	Tommy
Michael Nardelli	...	Dylan

Storyline

A family weekend is fraught with emotional landmines for mercurial and sensitive Lynn (Barkin) as she arrives at her parents' Annapolis estate for the marriage of her estranged eldest son Dylan (Michael Nardelli), accompanied by her three younger children (Ezra Miller, Kate Bosworth, Daniel Yelsky). Lynn's hopes for a joyful reunion are crushed as her wry but troubled middle son Elliot (Ezra Miller) lobs verbal grenades at his mother and her relatives while daughter Alice (Kate Bosworth), a fights valiantly to keep her longtime demons under control. The weekend quickly unravels as Lynn demands to be heard by her aloof, disdainful mother (Ellen Burstyn), ailing, distant father (George Kennedy) and ever-judgmental sisters (Siobhan Fallon, Diana Scarwid), but most especially by her ex-husband Paul (Thomas Hayden Church) and his hot-tempered second wife Patty (Demi Moore). Confronted with the deeply painful, half-buried truths that have given rise to the family's primal web ofresentments ...

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Plot Keywords:

marriage | wedding | family gathering | sitting on a toilet | bare chested male | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for teen drug/alcohol abuse, pervasive language including sexual references, and brief graphic nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site [jp]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 December 2011 (Greece)

Also Known As:

A Reasonable Bunch

Filming Locations:

Oakland Charter Township, Michigan, USA.

Box Office

Budget:

$4,000,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cineric, Filmula, Mandalay Vision

Technical Specs

Runtime:

119 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

French visa # 131930.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Ben: Do you think mom is hot?
Elliot: No, not really.
Ben: Why?
Elliot: I don't know. She's not my type.
Ben: You don't think she's pretty? Even if she wasn't mom.
Elliot: Uh, look, every opinion is objective. You know, maybe she's pretty in a universal sense. Uh, I mean, who the fuck knows? I'm just saying, she doesn't do it for me.
Ben: Do you think other people think she's hot?
Elliot: I don't know, some people fuckin' like McDonalds.
Ben: I like McDonalds.
[...]

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Connections

Featured in The Tonight Show with Jay Leno: Episode #20.31 (2011)

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Soundtracks

"Everything >Must Change"
(From the CTI album "Baltimore", 1978)
Written by Benard Ihgner
Performed by Nina Simone
(recorded in January 1978)

User Reviews

Loved it.

I saw this film at Sundance '11...never heard of the director, didn't know what I was walking into.

The film opens up with 4:3 aspect ratio home footage and I'm thinking..."Oh no, what did I get myself into?" But the pace was fast and so I figured, "I'll keep watching." I'm glad this film held my attention and ant-sized span of interest.

This is one of the best films I've seen all year.

The acting: (including especially the supporting actors) it's fantastic and real. This film is about real reactions, situations, dramatizations, and family dynamic. I would love to read the screenplay and see how closely it was followed.

Sam Levinson has a very successful career ahead of him. After the film there was a Q&A and Sam nervously got on stage to introduce the actors. He started forgetting the names of people and there was some laughter in the audience. I think everyone felt the same way about the film afterwards--awestruck and humbled by his demeanor.

I've never met Sam, but he seems to be an endearing person and I think he put his heart into this film. I aspire to direct great films like Another Happy Day.