In the Bedroom (2001)

This movie was a bit underrated.

I’ve wanted to watch this movie for a long time

Every gesture, pause and line reading rang so true.

Fast forward to "Tar" and Field is ripping off Kubrick, Haneke and even a little of "The Hand That Rocked the Cradle" while Blanchett is basically playing Mame (as she usually does).

I rewatched this last summer for the first time since it premiered.

I loved it in 2001, when I was 31. I loved it and predicated so much more last years. The additional 22 years of life made me see/understand it in a completely new way.

It's on Paramount Plus. I'll probably watch tonight because I have been on watching a lot of late 90s/early 00s movies.

I remember feeling bad for Marisa Tomei's character when Sissy's character slaps her.

R4 here — I meant appreciated, not predicated. Duh! Oh, dear.

This is one of those movies that I can barely stomach to watch if I'm being honest. The ending just makes me feel hopeless and sick, which is a testament to the writing and performances. It's an excellent film, but unpleasant. One of the quirks I remember most was Sissy Spacek's character relapsing on cigarettes and chain-smoking Marlboro Lights through the latter half of the film.

[quote]This is one of those movies that I can barely stomach to watch if I'm being honest.

This is really true - particularly the scene when they just tear into each other, blaming each other over everything. Just the anger, grief at themselves and each other is really hard to watch. I felt that way too about Anatomy of a Fall, though the ridiculousness of the french prosecutors some how made that movie lighter. But yes, is is a tough watch - particularly the final scene with the Spacek character satisfied that she got her way, while the Wilkinson character has this "OMG, what have I done" blank expression.

Gosh, Sissy is so underrated as an actor it's criminal. Mary, I know! But I don't ever think I've seen her give a poor performance and though she was among the elite actresses of her generation (early Boomers), she hasn't been remembered or revered in the way some of her less talented peers have.

R5 thanks for the information. This will be my movie of the evening.

The swing set! The swing set!

R9, I speculate that the realism and subtlety with which Spacek inhabits her characters (and which make her such a darling of cinephiles and elite film critics) cause her to be under appreciated by mainstream audiences and the film industry itself, which tends to equate great acting with show-stopping theatrics. She’s so natural, it’s easy to forget she’s acting.

She makes the intriguing and unusual choice to underplay key dramatic moments in this film, making her scenes of intense emotion all the more powerful and impactful. Her nuanced performance conveys a deep, simmering grief and rage that feels both authentic and devastating.

I also appreciated that Field’s screenplay, direction, and Spacek’s performance show a softer side to the character, such as her diplomatic, graceful reaction to Celia Weston’s character’s careless reference to dying families.

This is one of the rare films that has stayed with me for years after seeing it, and I sometimes wonder what became of the characters of the events of the film.