punishmentpark
A satisfactory comedy drama from the director who brought us the classic horror coming-of-age satire 'Teeth' (2007). The Coens brothers and Alexander Payne come to mind several times, but Lichtenstein does not prove to be as spot on as his colleagues - though he certainly was in 'Teeth'. Awkward situations and humour are well-represented, and several strange, though not always great (fantasy and or dream) sequences pop up here, but the story - even if it isn't all too complicated - meanders too much, only to 'culminate' in an overly sentimental conclusion of events.It's probably partly biographic for Lichtenstein (yes, he is the son of Roy Lichtenstein), but in the end, it doesn't need to result in this sort of indulgence. But I already mentioned before that 'Happy tears' is a satisfactory experience, and it still is that, even more so because of the fine acting jobs by the likes of Parker Posey, Rip Torn, Demi Moore and Ellen Barkin.A small 7 out of 10.
napierslogs
"Happy Tears" is an independent, fairly simple, dysfunctional family drama. Two grown sisters move back home to take care of their ailing father. The sisters of course have their own problems on top of dealing with their father who is in denial of his situation and very much trying to live as the patriarch of dysfunctionality.Many movies have told this type of story, and these filmmakers attempted to make their mark and do something better or at least different. But I was turned off by it. They were going for a dream-like feel with dream-like colours and imagery and of course actual dreams mixed in. I found it all very weird and made it hard for me to get into the film.The title relates to the laughs and tears that occur. The problem is there are no laughs, and although the characters were well written I wasn't drawn into them so I didn't feel what they were feeling - just uncomfortable.I appreciated the actors they cast, and the effort that they made to make this film new and good, but I have to recommend "The Savages" (2007) over this.
torrentstorm
The acting talent in this movie is beyond doubt. Rip Torn, Demi Moore, Parker Posey, Ellen Barkin...excellent excellent portrayals of their respective characters as, respectively, the over-sexed but dying father, the concerned, loving, but also realistic daughter, the younger, concerned, rich, but addicted daughter, and the older slut posing as a 'nurse' in exchange for free bed and board and a bit of money.There were events in the story I didn't understand. I will not list them here for fear of writing spoilers, but they did seem incoherent. I tried to figure out why this or that point was included, such as - one exception I'll make - why the younger accepted to get high with the kid and then had sex with him, which made her pregnant, as far as I understood, and then in the end, was obviously passing off the pregnancy as coming from her husband. He, admittedly, didn't want to have kids because of his neurosis. She wanted to get pregnant. So what did she do? Use the kid as a surrogate father so the child would be 'normal'? For an already dysfunctional family beset with problems, wasn't this adding insult to injury? Well, you'll have to decide. but both sisters, at least, seemed to take the situation much as you'd be taking your regular cup of coffee. That looked weird to me, if my understanding is correct.Anyway, I decided to forget the parts I didn't like/understand and concentrate on the powerful appreciation and portrayal of real life people, and in that sense, the movie played out grandly. Worth watching, and as usual, the highlights of Torn's hilarious antics that elicit snickers and giggles are always good.For what it's worth, I think, though, he was much funnier in 'The Golden Boys'.
Wes Lambert
Friday night, we here at the MockingMovies household were in a movie-less funk with nothing to watch. Thank God, for Comcast giving us the option to spend too much money and watch movies that are still playing in theaters. The preview for "Happy Tears' presented what appeared to be a run of the mill dysfunctional family "dramedy" starring Rip Torn, Demi Moore, Parker Posey(this sold me on the movie) and Ellen Barkin. I have been a consummate fan of Parker Posey through her reign as the queen of the indies during the 90's and in her more conventional fare ("You've Got Mail" and "Scream 3"), and I had a feeling that she would raise this movie above the ordinary. I was not disappointed. There is so much going on here that is not hinted at in the trailer. Moore and Posey are sisters who have to return home to take care of their father ( Rip Torn) who is beginning to suffer from dementia. The family dynamic is quickly set up with Moore being the older, responsible sister who takes care of and shelters her younger, quirky, needy sister. Rip Torn walks the fine line between being the dark comedy offered by his dementia and the more weighty prospect of becoming a burden on his daughters. All of this is the run of the mill part I referred to before. The unexpected comes in the form of trippy fantasy sequences Posey's characters lapses into when confronted with anything remotely challenging and the fantastic Ellen Barkin. Barkin is a drugged up homeless woman and possible prostitute who having hit rock bottom appears to have moved into Rip Torn's house under the guise of being his nurse. The running joke is that spends the entire movie with a stethoscope around her neck.There is much to enjoy here and I would highly recommend "Happy Tears" .
AD
