Men, Women & Children (2014)

A group of high school teenagers and their parents attempt to navigate the many ways the Internet has changed their relationships, their communication, their self-image, and their love lives.

Director:

Jason Reitman

Writers:

Jason Reitman (screenplay), Erin Cressida Wilson (screenplay)

Stars:

Kaitlyn Dever, Rosemarie DeWitt, Ansel Elgort

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Adam Sandler	...	Don Truby
Jennifer Garner	...	Patricia Beltmeyer
Rosemarie DeWitt	...	Helen Truby
Judy Greer	...	Donna Clint
Dean Norris	...	Kent Mooney
Emma Thompson	...	Narrator (voice)
Timothée Chalamet	...	Danny Vance
Olivia Crocicchia	...	Hannah Clint
Kaitlyn Dever	...	Brandy Beltmeyer
Ansel Elgort	...	Tim Mooney
Katherine Hughes	...	Brooke Benton (as Katherine C. Hughes)
Elena Kampouris	...	Allison Doss
Will Peltz	...	Brandon Lender
Travis Tope	...	Chris Truby
David Denman	...	Jim Vance

Storyline

Men, Women and Children follows the story of a group of high school teenagers and their parents as they attempt to navigate the many ways the internet has changed their relationships, their communication, their self-image, and their love lives. The film attempts to stare down social issues such as video game culture, anorexia, infidelity, fame hunting, and the proliferation of illicit material on the internet. As each character and each relationship is tested, we are shown the variety of roads people choose - some tragic, some hopeful - as it becomes clear that no one is immune to this enormous social change that has come through our phones, our tablets, and our computers.

---

Plot Keywords:

internet | high school | computer | anorexia | video game | 

---

Taglines:

The real Modern Family.

---

Genres:

Comedy | Drama

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong sexual content including graphic dialogue throughout-some involving teens, and for language

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official Twitter

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 October 2014 (USA)

Also Known As:

Pale Blue Dot

Filming Locations:

Austin, Texas, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$16,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$47,553, 3 October 2014, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$461,162, 17 October 2014

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Pictures, Right of Way Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

119 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Datasat

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Director Jason Reitman felt so much of the acting in the film was so based on reactions to texts, chats, and photos that using dummy screens with no text would not suffice. The production team had to create very realistic-looking versions of popular websites, all on their own tightly controlled software, which the actors could interact with in real time. According to Reitman, they spent "the same amount of budget on creating the digital world as we did creating the physical one. People know what Facebook looks like better than they do a hotel lobby, you stare at it all day, so it had to be convincing."

---

Goofs

In giving the 9/11 assignment the teacher says that "Other than the attack on Pearl Harbor it's the only time a foreign force attacked anything on U.S. Soil." That is incorrect. Even if you do not include the Revolutionary War you still have the War of 1812 where the U.S. was invaded by the British and the White House and Washington D.C. was burned.

---

Quotes

[Last lines]
Narrator: [recites extract from Carl Sagan's Pale Blue Dot, A Vision of the Human Future in Space] That's home. That's us. On it, everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was lived out their lives. Every young couple in love, every mother and father, hopeful child, every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there on the mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam. How frequent their misunderstandings, how fervent their hatreds. Our ...

---

Connections

References Avatar (2009)

---

Soundtracks

J.S. Bach: Gavotte En Rondeau [Partita For Violin Solo No. 3 In E, BWV 1006]
Written by Johann Sebastian Bach
Performed by Grumiaux Arthur (as Arthur Grumiaux)
Courtesy of Decca Music Group Ltd. under license from Universal Music Enterprises

User Reviews

Deep film and not a 'light' watch but a must watch!

Men, Women & Children is an introspection to the human isolation of modern life despite increased technical connections.

It is through the Men, Women & Children's characters, specifically high school teens and their parents, that writer/director Jason Reitman explores human communication and interaction and the changes caused by the internet.

It is through these relationships that Reitman then puts a mirror to the impact of the internet on communication, self-image, parenting, love and sexuality and other topics.

From this description, the film could sound like the audience might be in for a PBS special or history channel episode on the digital age. Men, Women & Children is a thought provoking film with interesting but increasingly faulted but well-developed characters. The well conceived plot and dynamic characters are thanks in part to author of synonymously titled novel in which the film is based, Chad Kultgen.

The subject matter of the film is quite heavy for a feature film of this magnitude and yet, it feels ultimately successful at being an accurate but dramatized portrait of modern American life. Though some archetypes are exaggerated slightly, such as the overprotective mom who has a support group that hands out pamphlets titled "The Dangers of Selfies", there is substantial justifiable honesty to this reality. It helps that Reitman chose to make the film more scathingly honest and therefore indie than superficial box office behemoth.

Since Men, Women & Children is an ensemble piece, the film was able to be stacked with notable actors and promising young actors: Adam Sandler, Rosemarie Dewitt, Jennifer Garner, Dean Norris, Judy Greer, Ansel Elgort, Kaitlyn Dever, Olivia Crocicchia, and Elena Kampouris. There is no weak performance from any actor or actress in the film, all are strong and believable. Men, Women & Children should have a character that resonates with you, either because you are that person, have been in that situation or know someone who has.

To top it all off, the movie has a complementary soundtrack that is appropriately disassociated and hauntingly airy. Ideally this film should be watched by parents and children simultaneously but preferably they should watch the film on their own for the ultimate message to hit home.

Please check out our website for more recent releases reviewed in full.