Image courtesy of Cavalier FilmsThomas Wolfe was right – you can’t go home again. Better yet, you can’t return to your childhood home and expect the people who still live there to be the same ones you left behind. Everyone has experienced that uncomfortable awkwardness of coming home for the first time as an adult and realizing it’s no longer home. In Familiar Strangers, writer Brian Worthington finds himself facing this universal transition from child to adult when he visits his family for the first time after leaving home and learns he’s been replaced by the family dog.
Brian (Shawn Hatosy) left his parent’s home three years ago. Unfortunately, he did so without his father Frank‘s (Tom Bower) blessing. Frank is one of those fathers who always expected his oldest son would one day take over the family business (the local hardware store); and, Brian is one of those sons whose plans involve becoming a writer instead of peddling hardware. Now, here it is three years after Brian flew the family coop, and Brian the published author is returning home to spend Thanksgiving weekend with the estranged family he left behind.
Familiar Strangers isn’t your typical coming home film. Instead of following the standard Hollywood narrative format in which only a few elements of the coming home theme are buried in the bowels of one of its many subplots, John Bell’s script focuses on the character dynamics that develop as a result of the transition. The narrative progression is slow, yet steady, meandering along at its own pace, only pausing to explore the different character facets affecting Brian’s trip home.
Obviously, there’s some unresolved tension between Brian and his father, astutely pointed out by Allison (Nikki Reed), the supermarket checkout girl, when she notices Brian’s unusual purchase of sleeping pills and razor blades. But, then again, who wouldn’t resort to that lethal combo after learning their father has replaced them with the family dog?
Yet, Frank’s unhealthy obsession with his geriatric golden retriever Argus isn’t the only thing that makes Brian continually beat his head against the wall in frustration. His pacificist mom Dottie (Ann Dowd) is in complete denial about any unpleasantry she encounters in life. Younger brother Kenny (DJ Qualls) is the family smartass who refuses to grow up. Sister Erin (Cameron Richardson) gives new meaning to the phrase “bitter divorcee,” resulting in her being overly protective of her 8 year-old daughter Maddy (Georgia Mae Lively), a mini-adult who is smarter than the rest of the Worthingtons put together.
Yet, Frank’s unhealthy obsession with his geriatric golden retriever Argus isn’t the only thing that makes Brian continually beat his head against the wall in frustration. His pacificist mom Dottie (Ann Dowd) is in complete denial about any unpleasantry she encounters in life. Younger brother Kenny (DJ Qualls) is the family smartass who refuses to grow up. Sister Erin (Cameron Richardson) gives new meaning to the phrase “bitter divorcee,” resulting in her being overly protective of her 8 year-old daughter Maddy (Georgia Mae Lively), a mini-adult who is smarter than the rest of the Worthingtons put together.
Overall, Familiar Strangers is a well-written character study that does more than just dwell on the return of an estranged family member. Family dynamics are always more complicated than they first appear, and director Zackary Adler does an excellent job of flushing out the idiosyncrasies of Bell’s characters to remind us there’s more than one side to every story. Adler’s cinematography is as simple as the characters themselves: no flashy effects, no tricked-up angles. He just presents a straight forward view of a very relatable tale.
As for whether or not Familiar Strangers comes to an art house cinema near you, that’s entirely up to the producers. Even though the film hit the festival circuit in 2008, it still hasn’t been picked up by a distribution company, forcing Cavalier Films to distribute their fledgling film themselves. Familiar Strangers opened in seven cities last fall before it was pulled for the holiday season, and is now in the process of being re-released in more cities across the country this spring. Your best bet is to check the film’s official website (http://www.familiarstrangersmovie.com/) for upcoming release dates.
The first journey home marking the transition from child to adult is never an easy one. If you get the chance to see Brian’s journey, you definitely need to check it out. Your own family may not be as skilled at donkey basketball as the Worthingtons are, but you should relate to this group of characters just the same. Like Brian's family, ours are always there for us whether we like it or not.
© Left From Hollywood 3/6/2009
The first journey home marking the transition from child to adult is never an easy one. If you get the chance to see Brian’s journey, you definitely need to check it out. Your own family may not be as skilled at donkey basketball as the Worthingtons are, but you should relate to this group of characters just the same. Like Brian's family, ours are always there for us whether we like it or not.
© Left From Hollywood 3/6/2009
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