Junebug
Starring: Amy Adams, Embeth Davidtz, Benjamin McKenzie, Alessandro Nivola
Director: Phil Morrison
The film: This soft and gentle directorial debut from Phil Morrison showcases all that is good about independent American cinema: fine acting, a touch of humour, and a thoughtful - and thought-provoking - script.
Another trademark of the genre is that the film sets its sights firmly on family dynamics - in this case a son who returns to the town of his birth with his new bride, an art dealer who is chasing a contract from an eccentric local painter (Frank Hoyt Taylor). Once there, they are invariably dragged into his family's daily dramas.
Madeleine (Embeth Davidtz, right with Hoyt Taylor) is the worldly wife - British but raised in Japan and Africa - who George (Alessandro Nivola) is finally bringing home. Their arrival reopens a lot of old sores: there's his bitter younger brother (Benjamin McKenzie from TV's The OC), and his ageing and silently suffering parents.
But it's his brother's heavily pregnant wife (Amy Adams) who adds the spark and infectious enthusiasm while the rest of the clan mope and maunder. Dimwitted and delightful, Adams steals the show, and quickly wins over the visiting couple.