Unless you love depressing, slice-of-live British movies, you probably won't like The Winter Guest. Emma Thompson and her mother Phyllida Law play a bickering mother-daughter pair with deep seated issues that never get brought up or resolved. It's always clear there are some huge issues, like Phyllida's trembling hand or Emma covering her ears when her mother talks, but like most slice-of-life movies, we don't see the decades of hurt that led to those moments.
In another plot point, two pre-teen boys, Sean Biggerstaff and Douglas Murphy talk while sitting outside in the middle of the snow. Doug is mostly interested in a little kitten, who probably wants to go inside where it's warm as much as the audience wants the boys to do the same. Sean rants on and on about the frustrations he has with his hormones and changing body. It's extremely awkward to listen to, but one can only imagine how awkward it was for him to say such exposing things in front of the camera. This really isn't a feel-good movie, but instead a very heavy family drama. Alan Rickman stands behind the camera this time around, but if look really hard, you can find him in a cameo. I blinked and missed it. Unless you really want to see Emma Thompson bickering with her mother, you might want to pick out something lighter for this evening.
Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, due to adult subject matter, I wouldn't let my kids watch it.
In another plot point, two pre-teen boys, Sean Biggerstaff and Douglas Murphy talk while sitting outside in the middle of the snow. Doug is mostly interested in a little kitten, who probably wants to go inside where it's warm as much as the audience wants the boys to do the same. Sean rants on and on about the frustrations he has with his hormones and changing body. It's extremely awkward to listen to, but one can only imagine how awkward it was for him to say such exposing things in front of the camera. This really isn't a feel-good movie, but instead a very heavy family drama. Alan Rickman stands behind the camera this time around, but if look really hard, you can find him in a cameo. I blinked and missed it. Unless you really want to see Emma Thompson bickering with her mother, you might want to pick out something lighter for this evening.
Kiddy Warning: Obviously, you have control over your own children. However, due to adult subject matter, I wouldn't let my kids watch it.