At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Easily the biggest piece of Right wing non sense propaganda I ever saw.

Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

Characters: 2 Adams, Blunt, and Arkin deliver good performances, allowing me to connect and care about what happensScreenplay: 1.5The plot is one the viewer has seen countless times, but it is cleaned up with a fresh citrus scent of decaying bodies. Cinematography: 1.5 Emotional:3.0 In contrast to the quirky happy title, I was pleasantly surprised with the relatable characters and somber yet positive tone of the film.Overall: 2.0

This movie wasn't the greatest. It didn't boast incredible performances. What it did do was make you wonder if a one armed man could snag Amy Adams. If that doesn't suck you in right there then this movie isn't for you. A middle aged single mom moves her maid business to the bio hazardous waste business. She recruits her sister and soon they begin to make good money. She has a son who just so happens to not be that annoying as a child actor. Alan Arkin is beside him in most scenes making his lines seem believable. There's a lot more to the movie but the overall summary is a feel good story about two sisters who despite their strong shells, have had a rough time in life. Not a comedy, but not a bore. Amy Adams cleavage is available in substantial amounts. If you want to sit down and leave saying "That was good ", then look no further this movie is for you. Unless your mother committed suicide, then this movie is directed towards you and I'm very sorry for your loss.

The overwhelming feeling of finally getting to watch an Indie that I would otherwise have been unable to, or have had to watch in a censored form (the way I watched the ripped-apart version of 'Little Miss Sunshine'), far outweighed my actual thoughts in terms of how the movie actually affected me/what I thought of the effort. At the time it released, when I got to watch it unfettered with a like-minded audience in one of my favorite Indie cinemas, all I could think about was that I had the opportunity to watch 2 beautiful actresses, a very quirky character actor (make that two - Alan Arkin, along with Steve Zahn) and some dark humor, a kinda staple for non-mainstream comedy.In hindsight though, I feel that there was no narrative heft to it all. The story was just about there, apparently inspired by something the makers heard on NPR and concocting a tale around it, but there's nothing 'real' or 'heavy' to feel inspired by, or even moved by. The players are all great without exception, so it's perhaps in the material itself, that smacked of being more self-congratulatory I-know-how-this-will-go-down kinda motif that served only to inspire the makers and perhaps the payers that signed on, but not anyone else, not specifically the audience that paid to watch this. Something got lost in translation too, maybe? 'Sylvia' was not all that great a pedigree of the director, and I'm not sure I'm in a minority on that thought.Plot-wise, the contrivance that drives the lead to get into the business she does (Zahn's character just saying that she needs to get into it, because it's just ...there) is the hook that the entire plot takes off on, and has to be one of the weakest rationales ever to grace an Indie screen in years. Lazy screen writing, or a distinct lack of 'inspiration'. Adams' need to 'reach out' to certain characters also, to me, rang false every time she tried, and to give the film-makers the benefit of doubt, perhaps they willfully played it that way to depict Adams' character's shallowness (or maybe, social awkwardness? or maybe, genuine uncertainty, considering the situation all of those times) in this milieu. If that's the case, I have no problem with it. But if that was not, then what were they thinking? They needed us, the audience, squarely in her corner, and they lost us (most of us, anyway) every time.Not to say this movie was bad. Far from it, actually. It was just sad that this lightweight drama drew such a cast of talented performers. They, like the audience, deserved better. This one seems as lightweight as the other Indie with Zahn, 'Management'.Arkin has a lengthier character to play here than in 'Little Miss Sunshine', and the movie is all the better for it. In spite of that, this one kinda doesn't rise to the level I think (now) that it could have.Conclusively, regardless of the fact that this seems a misfire of sorts in hindsight, the fact remains that I immensely enjoyed it when I was lucky enough to watch it.

Similar to Little Miss Sunshine, this indie flick is a likable film with plenty of meaningful moments to savour on... all to come to a disappointment in the end.The film failed to cover the plot in a way by leaving holes and patches somewhere, where it could have strive to be as wholesome as possible. Many details critical towards the character developments are not explained or totally missing. It may be possible that it is the intention to leave the viewer more room for interpretation, however once too many details are left out, it only becomes distracting and serves to rob off the viewer's focus on what was going on.For example, who is the father of the child? How did the main character ended up with a life living by hand-to-mouth but still able to maintain her..err..relationship with a certain someone? Where is the certain reconciliation that was missing?