Another Year

3 Paws
Seen Jan. 28 @ AMC Oakview Plaza 24

This film isn't for everyone, as evidenced by the series of adult couples who groaned and gabbed their way through the first third before announcing to the audience that they were leaving because, well, they were depressed as hell and just couldn't take it any more. (A quick note on movie-going etiquette - it's perfectly fine to get up and leave, but don't be obnoxious about it. Wait until you're out in the lobby before you start ranting. Better yet, wait until you get home and then blog about it.)

Watching Mike Leigh's quiet character study of a thoroughly engaging British couple - Tom and Gerri - and the walking wounded who populate their lives during the course of a year was difficult yet worth the effort. If you're moved by actors who truly disappear behind their on-screen personas, no matter how steeped in despair these personas are, see it. It was like spying on someone through their kitchen window - I felt guilty yet compelled to continue.

Bonus Bones: 0
If there was ever a movie character who could have used the unconditional love of a dog, it's Mary, Gerri's co-worker and the couple's frequent houseguest. No pups present, though. Is that a British thing?