Evie (Lauren Ambrose, Six Feet Under), a
rebellious 17-year-old, sabotages her interviews at prestigious
colleges. To hide her deception, Evie lies about her savant sister’s
poetry, setting off a chain of events which include an infamous TV
appearance, a new love, and the revelation of a long buried family
secret.
CRITIQUE
Evie is a
poet, but this is a fact she keeps from everyone except for her savant
sister. Trying to find herself, she deliberately blows every college
interview she goes on, making a mockery of the interview process and
higher education in general. Evie’s sister, Emily (Taylor Roberts),
is in her own world. Mentally disabled after a childhood fall, Emily
cannot function on her own, but can recite whole literary works. When
she starts reciting poetry that no one has ever heard of, her mother,
Martha (Amy Madigan) thinks her daughter may be something special.
Harry (John Savage), the girls’ father, never comes out of his
basement hobby room, and shows little interest in what is going on
upstairs.
Evie and
Martha do not have much of a relationship. Martha shows little
interest in her daughter, and has no idea of how she is going about
her interviews. James (Fran Kranz), the closest thing Evie has to a
friend, takes one look at the poems and knows that Evie wrote them,
not Emily, but for as obvious as it is, Martha never catches on until
it is too late. James gets mixed signals from Evie, who does not seem
to know she wants in any aspect of her life. Theirs is a portrait of
adolescence that is familiar without being patronizing, a rare thing.
The actors
are the best thing about Admissions. Madigan is compelling as
the mother, so caught up in one daughter that she has forgotten the
other. And it’s nice to see Christopher Lloyd in something again, and
something more or less straight, too, as opposed to the Doc Browns and
the Jim Ignatowskis for which he is commonly known. John Savage is as
good as he always is, making the most of what is probably the smallest
part in the film. Savage and Lloyd get little screen time, but they
are at the center of every scene they are in.
The acting is
great, but as a film, Admissions is painfully banal. The
story, one of hidden family secrets and painful revelations, is one
that we have seen before many, many, many times, and often to better
effect. This is not a bad film, not a good film, but one that simply
is. While not exactly a waste of time, you won’t be missing much by
not seeing it. In a sense, the film borders on irrelevance. What a
shame it is that we can’t take these great performances and transplant
them into something with a little more life.
THE VIDEO
Admissions
is presented in the
original 1.85:1 shooting ratio. The transfer is crisp, with all color
levels well rendered. The overall picture is clean and free of
defects.
THE AUDIO
This DVD is
presented in Dolby Digital 2.0, and the presentation is sharp, despite
the fact that the film, by its very nature, never gets to really show
it off. The dialogue comes through clearly, even in the softer
moments, and the dispersal is even.
THE EXTRA
The original
theatrical trailer.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Admissions is the kind of
family secrets drama that has been done many times over, and often
better. The actors do well, but the material feels too familiar, too
seen-it-before to ever be really engaging. The revelations, such as
they are, come few and far between, and they are never much of a
surprise. The lack of bonus material here certainly does not make
this DVD any more attractive.
