IN A NUTSHELL:
This film is a moving portrait of the lives of twenty-four characters during the spring during the turbulent months of the quarantine of the pandemic in 2020. The movie was written and directed by Peter Hedges
THINGS I LIKED:
The movie starts by showing clips from Zoom meetings with the actors in the cast. It's really fun to see their homes. The ensemble includes an impressive list: Mary-Louise Parker, Judith Light, Moses Ingram, Ron Livingston, Alison Pill, Elaine May, Raul Castillo, Noma Dumezweni, Rosemarie DeWitt, Daphne Rubin-Vega, and so many more!
I love all of the shout-outs to nurses as heroes. I teach classes at a nursing school.
I also loved how each Zoom conversation showed how everyone was connected as they led into new conversations. One person from each clip spills over into the next clip's story.
Some of the stories will evoke a tear or two from your eyes, especially if they resonate with your personal experience of the quarantine during 2020.
THINGS I DIDN'T LIKE:
This would have been a more effective movie if it had been released a year ago.
One of the problems with this movie is that we go to theaters to watch movies to escape from our lives. Instead, this movie WAS our life during the Covid quarantine. Some viewers may not want to relive those horrible memories.
There are some heated conversations between siblings about politics.
This movie makes me grateful for my family. They don't yell and scream at each other like many of the people in this movie.
Ultimately, the movie was depressing, yet hopeful at moments. I guess that describes the pandemic, eh?
TIPS FOR PARENTS:
Profanity and F-bombs
We see a topless woman as a digital sex worker from her home online.
A guy asks his girlfriend to send him sexual pictures of herself.
Spanish is spoken without subtitles
A bi-racial, gay couple fight about racism
There are some conversations between a father and daughter about the Black Lives Matter protests.
THEMES:
Habit
Control
Hope
Family
Racism
Politics
Pandemic
Fear
Loneliness
Medical workers
Therapy
Depression
Anxiety.
