Have you seen The Kids Are All Right yet? I went with my friend, Andrea, and though I'm supposed to be on holiday, had to share this with you. I want every woman to see this movie as soon as possible. And here's why.
This is a movie that puts what's important to women front and center. It's about relationships. Love. And what it takes to make a family.
This is a movie that shows women of a certain age in a positive way. Here are Julianne Moore and Annette Bening looking fabulous and clearly middle-aged. That's something women want to see, whether we're younger and fearful about midlife, or hitting the big 5-0 and wondering where the positive role models are.
This is a movie by a woman director, Lisa Cholodenko. After Kathryn Bigelow's Oscar, it's beginning to feel like the year for women directors. We need more stories told by women to appear on the big screen (all three screens, in fact: television and mobile, too).
And therein lies the most important reason to see this movie - beyond the fact that you'll have a deeply satisfying experience watching some realistic and lovable human beings - is that it sends a powerful signal to Hollywood. Women (and the men we love) want to see films about people's lives. We're interested in love, not lampooning. Caring, not carnage. Insight, not ignorance. And if you make them, we will come.
So, interrupt your plans for this weekend and take in The Kids Are All Right. Go with your mother. Your sister. Your best friend. Your teenagers. Your partner. Your sweetheart. Take your entire church group or go alone. But go.
(And, once you've seen it, write and share your thoughts with us. I'll check in from my friend's cottage to see whether you loved this movie as much as I think you will.)
Julia Moulden is an author, speaker, and columnist. Her new book will be published in 2011 - and she'll get back to it as soon as she returns from the cottage. Honest. (Oh, and she's just getting her feet wet with Twitter -- you might like to follow Julia Moulden on Twitter!)
Follow Julia Moulden on Twitter: www.twitter.com/juliamoulden
It's all about voting with our wallets now. We want films about things that matter to us!
I'm a middle-aged woman. I saw the movie. I was frankly embarrassed by the couple's dialogue, perhaps meant to be comedic/satiric but which fell flat (e.g., Nic's comment about the landscaping being "so indigenous"), and appalled by how Jules treated the Mexican help (and how the Cholodenko directed him--he wasn't funny; he was made fun of). For me, frankly, the most authentic characters were Paul and the kids. The couple often verged on caricature.
Oh, and the title is The Kids Are All Right--it isn't even an authentic nod to The Who's The Kids Are Alright.
on the other points, let's just say we differ, but thanks for sharing your thoughts, SHMoore!