A Little Help (2010)
It's a movie for everyone whose life has been thrown off-course, out of whack, or simply not turned out the way they planned it. In other words, it's a movie for everyone, period. Set in suburban Long Island in the summer of 2002, with the psychic wounds of 9/11 still fresh, A Little Help is a story that takes a comic, searching and profoundly empathetic look at a few pivotal months in the life of dental hygienist Laura Pehlke (Jenna Fischer)-an ordinary woman whose life suddenly flies off the rails-and her heroic efforts to re-establish a sense of security and normalcy for herself and her son.
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Released in 2010, "A Little Help" stars Jenna Fischer as a nearing-middle-age mother from Long Island whose marriage is troubled and her family overbearing. She turns to smoking, drinking and worse to cope and fill the void. Chris O'Donnell plays her husband (in a small role), Ron Leibman & Lesley Ann Warren play her father and mother, Brooke Smith & Rob Benedict her sister and brother-in-law, and Daniel Yelsky her son. Some people complain that this movie is depressing because it deals with heavy issues, like adultery, premature death, lawsuits, alcoholism, rebellious children and the like. While this is true, the tone is too quirky and light to regard with dismal seriousness. Some complain that the son is a little too disrespectful and it's infuriating. This is also true, but it's intrinsic to the plot. The film's all about Jenna's character escaping the manipulations of those who take advantage of her and try to control her. Jim Florentine from That Metal Show appears in an amusing sequence that reveals the emptiness of casual sex. The movie's not great, but it's good enough and, despite the amusing aspects, it smacks of real life, not to mention the subtexts are great and Jenna's a cutie. The film runs 109 minutes and was shot on Long Island, NY. GRADE: B
I like Jenna Fischer. Everybody likes Jenna Fischer. That said, she's like Rashida Jones, great in an ensemble, but nowhere near enough gravitas to pull off the lead. It's a question of intensity. Even in a light weight movie, the lead has to have some sort of inner tension that can be seen and heard. Fischer is just too easy to look past. You can't bring yourself to worry if she's going to be okay, because you know she will be. She radiates that innocent girlishness that makes men instinctively protective. In fact I'd wager that she's one of those women who hasn't gone more than a month without a steady boyfriend since high school, because 'good guys' won't leave her alone. Also, the directing was beyond lazy. I doubt he told anybody what do ever, including the editor. Frankly, I know a pretty talented guy who could recut this and make it a much better film. Honestly, that may be all it needs. Revised opinion, re-release it after cutting it so Fisher gets more close ups and the dialog moves faster. 6 out of 10Revised, revised Opinion: Wrote review while watching movie (was in about 1:26). Now that it's over my advice is to avoid. Unless you're a hardcore Fischer fan, it's not worth the time investment. Everything that's set up basically just hangs there. The characters don't get smarter (except learning not to tell gigantic lies you can't support). In fact, the writing pretty much loses all direction and just becomes forgettable nonsense with no resolution, point or lesson. 4 out of 10
A little help was a surprisingly nice family drama. It isn't your average Hollywood movie. If you expect the typical Sandra Bullock feature, you probably won't like it. If you expect Jenna Fisher's character to be a perfect middle-class mother, you probably won't like it either. It isn't Pleasantville. Her characters smokes and drinks too much. She and her son gets into big fights, sometimes about nothing. And it isn't supposed to be funny like an episode of Married with children or a Wes Anderson movie.If you are looking for a movie with realistic family dynamic and flawed characters who try to do their best, you should watch this movie. Jenna Fisher has a few memorable scenes throughout with her controlling mother-in-law, a litigation lawyer and her son. Despite all her quirks, she is pretty much adorable. Actually, her flaws in the movie make her adorable and cool. It seems that some people did not like the movie because they felt frustrated at the main character's actions. In their eyes, Jenna Fisher's character never does the *right* thing. Sure she made a few bad decisions like lying for her son. On the other hand, I get the feeling that some of the haters just identified themselves with the slimy lawyer or some of the other very judgmental and controlling characters.This is not a must-watch movie but I would definitely recommend it.
"What's a cooler way to die, 9/11 or a arrhythmia thing?" Laura (Fischer) and Bob (O'Donnell) have a strained marriage. Bob works all the time and Laura drinks a lot. Their 12 year old son is stuck in the middle but prefers the dad. After an argument leads to Bob's death, Laura is left to figure out how to raise her son and support her family. This is a movie that is very different from the preview. The preview makes it look like a comedy, while there are some funny parts this is more of a drama. That said this is one fantastic movie. Watching each character deal with the situation is great to watch. There are parts that you laugh at that you feel like you shouldn't. This is also one of the best mother-son bonding movies I have ever seen, and there are scenes with her family that will make you mad. The fact that you have these feeling marks the sign of a good movie. This is one of the biggest surprise movies of the year. You expect one thing, it's another, but an absolutely fantastic movie to watch. Overall, an extremely entertaining and enjoyable movie to watch that won't disappoint. I give it an A.