crispin_13
I would like to start by saying that the dialogue was—for the most part—well written, the characters were good, and the actors were really good. It sounds like a good movie right? Well, it would have been if it hadn't all been done before. I mean REALLY ALL BEEN DONE BEFORE.The Big Chill was the aftermath of a suicide in a group of college friends. The same thing here except he didn't succeed. Both characters are even named Alex! Several of the characters are carbon copies of Big Chill characters. One of the characters in About Alex is SO similar to a character in The Big Chill that they even dressed him the same right down to the horn rimmed glasses and THEN went out and found the actor that most resembled the original—Jeff Goldblum —cast member!! It was laughable! I've never experienced anything like this before. Some of the conversations were direct lifts as well regarding music of eras past. One cast member even refers to movies from the eighties. Unbelievable! The only way to logically explain it is that someone (the writer? the director?) wanted to remake The Big Chill but couldn't get the rights. So the changed as much as they had to for legal reasons. The movie closes with a flashback of the group meeting for the first time. Lawrence Kasdan also fined this scene but cut it from his film. I found myself enjoying that because I had always wanted to see that scene in The Big Chill. By the time I reached the end, the two were almost interchangeable. Oh, one more thing, the group shot at the end of About Alex i the same as the group shot on the cover of the video box for The Big Chill. Unreal.
Knox D Alford III (knoxiii)
My bias before viewing was an expectation of a massive boring failure that I would regret watching because it dealt with attempted suicide. I couldn't have been more mistaken. My reticence in watching was duly derived from substantial repetitive experiences from most all films of this type: one location with characters you never really get to know, complex back stories left unexplained, and dark subject matter. What a surprise was in store for me! In fact the sole reason drawing me to the film was the beautiful & talented Maggie Grace and a growing appreciation for Jason Ritter. Friendship in a time where Facebook & texting have relegated meeting & talking to the fate that cd's rendered the 8 track, is a constant presence in my thoughts. So, it was invigorating to see college friends nearing 30 come together to support a friend, traveling from across the country for a whirlwind philosophical, confrontational, emotive, supportive & well paced weekend of collective personal growth. There were just enough characters to keep every minute fresh with information & few enough to not gloss over any single character & give each a quality part in the story without getting lost. This movie was extremely dynamic and as such, had no lulls. It's been said, "what a difference a day makes". Lucky for the viewer, a weekend of real, old-fashioned, interpersonal exploration & reflection makes one powerful movie. There wasn't a single moral. There were many. Whether you experienced college or high school, or were close with your neighborhood friends, this movie will without a doubt hit home for you. It was interesting how the friends had achieved varied levels of societal & romantic success, yet fell right back into the rhythm of their group identities like only a summer had passed. This will be a familiar feeling to everyone. It wasn't a love fest full of sympathy & crying on shoulders, which would be totally natural & expected. It was engrossing because of the diversity of honest feelings & reactions that made the viewer easily identify with each character. All actors were grade A, & I look forward to enjoying their acting in future films. Ritter, his best friend, & Grace were the standouts & I was relieved to see Aubrey Plaza tone down her typical sarcastic personality. In doing so, she made her character more appealing & closer to the personalities of the collective cast. I think viewers on average will rate this movie ranging from 6-9/10, but as you can see for me it hammered home an expectation-defying 8/10. I highly recommend this movie as a modern adaptation of "The Big Chill" without the killer soundtrack. It was as informative and enjoyable as much as it was provocative and insightful. Knox D. Alford, III
Amari-Sali
Trigger Warning(s): Suicide topics and imageryIt is very weird to see a film about suicide. If just because, to a certain degree, it forces you to realize how odd of a subject it is to approach. Like in the film, we watch Jason Ritter's character, post- suicide attempt, gain this weird peaceful look. A look which reminds you that suicide is caused by many things, but part of the reason comes from a call for help unanswered. Sometimes by friends or even a higher power. Leading to the question: is this film worth seeing or perhaps it should be skipped?Characters & StoryAfter having a bit of a downward spiral due to finances, among other things, Alex (Jason Ritter) decided to slit his wrists. Something he seemed to regret doing for he calls an ambulance for himself, as well as his friend Ben (Nate Parker) (1) who orchestrates a meeting of all of Alex's old friends. This includes Josh (Max Greenfield), a bitter PHD candidate who seems to hate everything and everyone, though probably fears his own company for too long; Siri (Maggie Grace) who is Ben's current girlfriend, the girl Josh wanted before Ben met her; Sarah (Aubrey Plaza), who is an attorney who Josh messed around with since he couldn't have Siri; Isaac (Max Minghella) who is the richest of the group and often clashes with Josh; and then, focusing on Ben, Ben is the one who introduced Alex to everyone and seems to be Alex's rock. Though not when he was in a deep need for his friendship.Leading us on what may feel like a familiar journey of college friends having a reunion, thanks to tragedy, in which their romantic entanglements come out; a lot of sex and drama happens; and ultimately you are left with a sense of hope for the characters, but aren't sure if it may last.PraiseWhen it comes to this movie, I was really only familiar with Aubrey Plaza and Max Greenfield, who both really present themselves as actual actors, and oddly enough didn't approach their roles as one character fits all. Something which sort of shocked me, especially for Plaza, for it showed she had range. Aside from those two I must admit no one else really stood out, but they did present an interesting story and will keep you interested throughout. If just because you'll likely feel most of the characters are developed to the point where perhaps only Siri feels underdeveloped. Ben is a writer whose life isn't how he wants, and now has Siri who he loves, but is sort of growing apart from; Josh looks at Ben as this golden child who got everything he wanted, including things Josh himself wanted; Sarah is professionally successful, but romantically a mess; and Isaac we don't learn a huge amount about, but with his girlfriend Kate (Jane Levy) joining him, and through his interactions with Sarah, while his background may not be developed, through his relationships with Sarah and Kate we do get to know and understand him. Also, I should note, Levy's character, despite not being central to the story, is certainly interesting since she plays a 22 year old, just getting her career started, who is around a bunch of late 20 year somethings who are jaded, in their careers, and she is the outsider dating one of their friends.CriticismAs confrontational as Josh is in the film about Alex's suicide, I feel that this film for some reason glazes over Alex's suicide just a bit too much so that everyone else's drama can get established and developed. With this though, Alex just becomes a catalyst for bringing everyone together and is largely forgotten about. And truly, after watching the film, only Sarah and Josh really stand out and everyone else strangely feel like their co-stars. Part of the reason is because Josh says things which get your attention, and Sarah is presented as more human than anyone in the film. For, in my opinion, as much as everyone does get the chance to be developed, between the information being boring, and their delivery not really getting my attention anyway, it really makes it so the film seems to sit on Plaza and Greenfield's shoulders.Like with Ben and Siri, they are made interesting due to Josh's jealousy, but take that away Josh from them and they lose any of their draw. The same goes for Isaac and Kate to a point, if Sarah wasn't pining over Isaac since she sees him as the one who she should have been with, then they also lose a lot of what kept them relevant. Though, again, the biggest victim is Alex since after his suicide attempt, pretty much Josh's callous ways, and Sarah trying to dote on him, are the sole reminders that what brought everyone together was him.Overall: TV ViewingPerhaps this maybe wrong to say, but in light of recent events I was hoping this film would really explore what leads a person to suicide and also how it effects the survivors in terms of the guilt associated with them perhaps being capable of preventing the suicide attempt, as well as trying to work with the person if they live. And while those topics are mentioned, they get drowned out in everyone's personal drama to the point you wonder why this movie is called About Alex when in truth it is more about everyone but him. Though, even with that said, this was a good movie to me and is very watchable. But, with it not really hitting the topic of suicide hard, and letting the would-be supporting characters end up the stars, I have to say this film deserves the "TV Viewing" label.
