But the universal family content takes in various twists of originality in the context of a same-sex marriage, and then becomes quite cutting-edge. In the movie, Annette Bening's Nic and Julianne Moore's Jules portray a lesbian couple together for 20 years who give birth to a boy and a girl respectively by artificial insemination. That is to say, the kids are genetic half siblings with the same biological father and different birth mothers.
Growing up without a fatherly presence, the kids finally make it to contact with their bio -dad or, more accurately, the sperm donor, and bring him into their family life. However, the new member, though good and honest, unintentionally spawns a crisis that brings this Southern California family to near collapse.
In Hollywood films, gay characters don't often lead mainstream pictures and in many cases just play the minor role of the lead's friend offering some romantic advice. In Chinese cinema, they are even relegated to some mockeries and jokes as what Chinese movie goers have seen lately in "Let the Bullets Fly" and "If You Are the One". But not here. Ms. Choledenko mitigates the possible dislike that a homosexual movie would garner to straight viewers and shows their family problems and vulnerability with heart and soul.
As the film leads up to the end, an audience just feels the vibe of the family and will involuntarily think about their own life challenges in a similar way.
The movie finishes after the daughter leaves the nest for college and the family once again consolidate. But it doesn't make a complete story. They just keep the biological father, who just cannot be ignored once he is found, outside their life and only come to a hasty and strained happy ending. Some movies deliberately leave the end dangling to make the story insightful and meaningful but no can do for this one since it seems set out to dig into gay family difficulty and seriously examine the touchy issues of gay couples .
On my 1 to 10 movie scale, I give "The Kids Are All Right" a SEVEN.
View more about The Kids Are All Right reviews
