Home Again is not Reese Witherspoon's best rom-com

Movie Title:   Home Again

Grade:   C

Rating: PG-13, 1 hour 37 minutes

In a Nutshell:   No, this movie isn’t related to the 2013 Home Again movie with Tatyana Ali. This rom-com features America’s sweetheart, Reese Withersppon, but certainly is not her best work.  You'd think they would have picked a different name. Something like "Shacks Up with An Impetuous Boy Toy" would be appropriate.

 

Uplifting theme: 

• “This is your day, your year.  Get ready Alice.  The future is yours!”  - Alice’s father
• Family comes in different shapes and sizes.
• Be open to change.

Things I liked:

• Alice’s little blonde daughter is adorable, played by Eden Grace Redfield.  She has a bright future in film and TV if she wants one.  You can also see her in The Glass Castle.
• They play Heads Up! in a musical montage, so you might miss it.  It's a free app and a lot of fun!
• Alice’s boy toy is played by Pico Alexander.
• Teddy is played by Nat Wolff.  Did you know his mother is Polly Draper (thirtysomething: Season 1) and his father is Michael Wolff, the bandleader on the old Arsenio Hall Show?  Nice pedigree!
• I love Candace Bergen in anything.  It’s always great to see her.
• Jon Rudnitsky playes the only one in the movie who acts like a responsible grown up.  We’ll see him again in James Franco’s upcoming movie The Disaster Artist: My Life Inside The Room, the Greatest Bad Movie Ever Made

Things I didn’t like:

• Throwing up, sleeping with a stranger after just meeting.  Nope.  Not glamorous.  Alice and her boy toy are sluts.  What happened to old fashioned romance?
• Lots of music montages with talking, laughing, drinking, and kissing.
• The boy toy acts selfishly when he storms out when his friends explain they’re working on additional projects.  Instead, he should be happy for them.  He seems young and immature and self-centered the entire time.
• Alice (Reese Witherspoon) makes some very bag parenting choices.  For example, she brings in three male strangers to live in her house, even though she has two young daughters.  That's just asking for trouble in the real world.  Sleeping with one of them is irresponsible and confusing for the children. It's supposed to be adorable and charming in the movie, but it frustrated me.
• The premise is pretty unrealistic and ridiculous.
• Instantly forgettable. 

Tips for parents: 

• “Can’t I just go on anti-depressants just like everyone else?” – Isabel (Lola Flanery)  She talks about having anxiety and depression and watches her mom pop pills every time she has a problem.
• Profanity.  I hate it when kids swear.
• A married woman sleeps with a young guy (you only see kissing)

MOVIE REVIEW MOM

@trinaboice