IMDB SUMMARY: Depressed single mom Adele and her son Henry offer a wounded, fearsome man a ride. As police search town for the escaped convict, the mother and son gradually learn his true story as their options become increasingly limited.
Kate Winslet blew me away with the subtle inflections in her character. The crumbs she left the audience to follow her on her journey of love and fear helped me connect to Adele and her struggle in finding love. Her relationship with Henry (Gattlin Griffith) was something to be admired, her unconditional love, her protective motherly instinct. I loved that the instinct overtook her at times and she became overprotective. THis was so true to the character, she had obvious mental health issues and this definitely shined through in her relationship with her son. However, it wasn’t displayed in a cruel way, but in more of a omnibenevolent.
Frank (Josh Brolin), our anti-hero, had a great performance too. A great father figure, cool under-pressure and a hunk. Adele’s dream man? Brolin’s depiction of Frank was brilliant, he ran the fine line between being aggressive and assertive. He got his way and was very pleasant about it. Frank was a character of juxtaposition. This can be hard for an actor to play due to having so many emotions coursing through a character at one time and not letting any one emotion take over.
As a film, overall I found Labor day to be very enjoyable and actually the first great romance I have seem in a very long time. I this is a film that should be remembered. However, I didn’t feel the timeless element to the film. It didn’t feel epic enough to be one of the true romantic greats. The stakes weren’t high enough. There wasn’t the death factor. I find that in most of the great romances ever written have the element of death involved; the fear that one of our lovers will die, it didn’t quite make it to a Romeo and Juliet or Titanic standard for me.
RATING: 8/10
