"Once there was this one day where everybody seemed to know they
needed each other. This one day when they knew for certain that
they couldn’t do it alone."
-April Burns
SYNOPSIS
The rebellious April Burns (Holmes) offers to
host an elaborate Thanksgiving dinner at her
Lower East Side apartment for her family after her mother becomes
terminally ill. As she plans for a holiday meal that will at least
leave off on good terms with her estranged family, she realizes
that her oven doesn’t work. Difficulty in finding an oven to
borrow, a jealous ex-boyfriend, and April’s inability to cook all
threaten to make the occasion a miserable failure, and April must
rely on the kindness of strangers in her building to succeed.
CRITIQUE
Writer/director Peter Hedges (screenwriter for
What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, About a Boy) makes it clear
that Pieces of April was inspired in no small part by his own
mother’s illness. The personal nature of such a project can be good
and bad - good because the filmmakers care about their story so much
and bad because that doesn’t necessarily mean the audience will find
the story nearly as interesting. Pieces being his directorial
debut, Hedges does manage to tell a compelling and occasionally
humorous story.
However, that’s not to say the film is perfect
by any means. If April Burns is a 21-year-old former problem child who
constantly lied, abused drugs, set fires, and generally made life
miserable for her family, then she must have gone through one hell of
a transformation to become the character Katie Holmes plays. What we
see is a caring, sweet individual who just happens to have a tattoo on
her neck and wear way too much makeup and jewelry. This makes the
character more sympathetic, but risks making her little more than a
cliché of a misunderstood free spirit.
By contrast are April’s mother Joy (Clarkson)
and father Jim (Oliver Platt). Joy’s ambivalence about making another
attempt to connect with her daughter is evident from the beginning,
and to complicate matters she is clearly dealing with her illness less
well than she would have her family believe. Clarkson even earned
Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for best supporting actress
in this role. Jim, however, is shouldering the burden for bringing his
family back together, desperately trying to make the trip to New York
work despite protestations from both his wife and his younger daughter
Beth (Alison Pill). It was mostly Jim who I ended up sympathizing
with, seeing him wax nostalgic thinking about good memories with April
or nervously touching his sleeping wife, wondering if she’s dead.
Pieces
succeeds because it’s a lot more than just a tribute to Hedges’
mother. The humor is smart, and themes of family, community, and
reliance on each other fit seamlessly into the story.
THE VIDEO
MGM presents Pieces of April in 1.85:1
anamorphic widescreen and full-frame version. Colors are not
particularly well saturated or bright, and the image is slightly
grainy. The film was intentionally shot with an unsteady camera,
and the visuals are more indicative of the snapshots a family
might take with a cheap camera. Pieces is not particularly
beautiful, but the shakiness of the camera and the imperfect
exposure of the film seem more appropriate for the film than
having everything look just right. Most of the scenes take place
in April’s dingy apartment building or in the family station
wagon, so the viewer isn’t missing out on any notable visuals.
THE AUDIO
MGM presents Pieces of April in English
and French 5.1 Dolby Digital Surround Sound. Dialog is clear
enough, though sometimes on the quiet side. There are only a few
scored scenes, and as writer/director Peter Hedges mentions in his
commentary, ambient sounds were used more than music. Again, most
of the film takes place in pretty tight quarters, so the audience
won’t be missing much with a basic speaker system.
THE EXTRAS
Short and sweet,
the DVD extras include the film’s theatrical trailer, a
15-minute piece called “All the Pieces Together” with
commentary from cast and crew, and audio commentary from
writer/director Peter Hedges. “All the Pieces Together”
moves along quickly and encompasses several of Hedges’ points
from his audio commentary as well as from cast members. The
audio commentary itself focuses on what the filmmakers were
trying to do in each scene, but also gives some of the more
interesting background information rather than being purely
anecdotal. Hedges also seems to have a good sense of timing,
cutting out just in time for the audience to hear something he’s
alluded to.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Pieces of April
is a touching story about family, community, and forgiveness. It seems
longer than the short 80 minute running time, but a few bits of humor
keep it moving. Peter Hedges mentions several times in the extras that
this was a very personal project for him, clearly evident in his
careful treatment of the subject matter. On the downside, if you can’t
personally relate to the film it will probably lose a lot in the
viewing. A rental is recommended.
