[THE PERFECT FAMILY
opens in Cleveland on Friday May 11 th exclusively at the Cedar Lee
Theatre.]
Review
by Bob Ignizio
Ann Renton's light comedy THE
PERFECT FAMILY is fully aware
that its title refers to something that doesn't exist, at least in
any objective sense. Families are by their very nature messy and
unpredictable, and any attempt to make them conform to some arbitrary
set of standards is not only doomed to fail, but usually
counterproductive. That's a lesson Eileen Cleary (Kathleen Turner)
has yet to learn when she finds out she's been nominated for
“Catholic Woman of the Year”.
Eileen's
Catholic credentials are impeccable – she helps Monsignor Murphy
(Richard Chamberlain) with communion, delivers “meals on wheels”
to shut-ins, and seems possessed of a sincere and unsanctimonious piety.
The problem is her family: Husband Frank (Michael McGrady) is a
recovering alcoholic, son Frank Jr. (Jason Ritter) is in the midst of
leaving his wife, and daughter Shannon (Emily Deschanel) is pregnant
and about to get married... to another woman. Eileen figures her only
hope at winning the award is to try and “fix” her family, a plan
that has predictably disastrous results.
THE PERFECT FAMILY
is a nice enough movie with a worthwhile message about acceptance and
a fair number of laughs, to boot. Turner takes a character who could
have been one dimensional and fake and manages to imbue her with life
and depth. Yes, Eileen has issues, but she's still a good person who
genuinely cares about her family, even if she doesn't know how to
deal with them very well. Even the film's portrayal of the Church is
reasonably nuanced, although more conservative Catholics will still
probably take issue with some of the film's criticisms, not to
mention its positive portrayal of a priest who covertly performs
same-sex wedding ceremonies. 2 1/2 out of 4 stars.
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