Stars:
Mark Ruffalo,
Laura Dern,
Peter Krause,
Naomi Watts
Director:
John Curran
Summary: Jack Linden (Mark Ruffalo) and Hank Evans (Peter Krause) are best friends who both teach at the same university in a small New England town. They both have young children and Jack's wife, Terry (Laura Dern) is close with Hank's wife, Edith (Naomi Watts). But while things appear happy on the surface, there are smouldering pockets of discontent underneath. Financial struggle and domestic boredom has drained the passion from Jack and Terry's marriage, while Hank's numerous infidelities and self-absorption has prompted Edith to find both comfort and sexual fulfilment with Jack. As Jack begins spending more and more time with Edith, it becomes obvious to Terry, whose anger culminates in a sexual encounter with Hank. Now that the deception has come full circle, both couples are left to decide the futures of their shattered unions. With a screenplay that incorporates 'We Don't Live Here Anymore' and 'Adultery', two short stories by Andre Dubus (IN THE BEDROOM), John Curran's film appears deceptively simple. While it's a garden-variety tale of suburban ennui and infidelity on the surface, it is brought to multi-layered life with a quartet of elegantly nuanced performances that fit together like the interlocking pieces of a puzzle. Plot is almost secondary to the emotional sparks that Ruffalo, Dern, Krause, and Watts give off, expertly and in equal measure.