Everybody's Fine

Robert De Niro has picked some interesting projects lately. In a nutshell, this movie goes from one awkward conversation to the next. It is a slow-moving family drama. The good news however is that every character is real, believable, and there may be someone here for each of us to relate to. Oh, and nevermind that it's a huge commercial for Amtrak and Greyhound.

De Niro plays a recent widower who is totally out of touch with his kids. As one of his sons puts it "People are polite. They don't always tell the truth." He has been told pretty much what he wants to hear. When his kids don't show up for a family weekend, he goes on a cross-country trip to see them.

Kate Beckinsdale, Sam Rockwell, and Drew Barrymore play his kids. They talk to each other but not really to their Dad. Sometimes it's like that. The payoff comes an hour and 15 minutes into the story when they finally get around the table for the first time if only fictionally. Everybody's not fine. But, I believe the best way to describe the ending of this movie is - bittersweet.

Watch this movie with someone who either needs to feel better about their family situation or needs a reality check to see how much of the rest of the country lives.