We Don't Live Here Anymore (8/10) Revisited

This could have been a movie that shook my soul. It didn't but that doesn't mean it's bad. Hell the message I was looking for was still there. It just came through in small portions instead of dominating the film like it should of. Instead there was some new messages that only know did I realize were quite good. However that main theme... god was it good!

The title should say it all. The film shows traces of what happens when you no longer live in your life. You still go through life the same, there's no turning back on what you have at this point. However your mind is wandering and distant. You can't abandon your current life so you move through life in a melancholy haze. I say glimpses of this in the movie. However at times I couldn't tell what I was watching. That is John Curran's fault. As I thought when watching his other films "Stone" and "The Painted Veil", he is a very jumpy director. He can't find a middle ground to make scenes good. Most his are either average to bad but then there are a couple of great to fantastic ones. The mix is pretty bad, but those great scenes stay with you more than those bad ones. I don't know if replacing Curran would solve it, he does have a thing for this type of genre. However if there is a name that is eluding me right now it may have been better.

The story revolves around two couples. Mark Ruffalo and Laura Dern live in one style of life. Peter Krause and Naomi Watts occupy the other. They are all best friends but there is a dark secret there. Ruffalo and Watts are having an affair. They are by far the most interesting characters in the film and give the best performances. Ruffalo plays an intellectual who thinks he can out wit all those around him, it's interesting to see him try. Watts is in love with Ruffalo more than her husband and maybe her kid. Her obsession is strong and entertaining. Dern and especially Krause are the weak links. Dern is a fine actress but either she played her character a bit nuts or it was already that way and could not be saved. Peter Krause... he just sucked...no emotion at all and there were times he should be showing at least some. I'd have replaced him with Sam Rockwell and maybe Dern with Laura Linney. This movie is still very good, but could have been better. I will say the score... is absolutely haunting. It's some of the best work I've ever heard really. here it is and let it build till the strings...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKv6lWWSgZQ

8/10
Recommendation: Good thinking mood piece. No need to rush to see it, but it has alot of potential to build followers