Kevin Spacey and Robin Williams

Lined with an all-star cast including  Kevin Spacey, and with actors taking pay cuts, the movie Shrink was destined to succeed. The film is a masterpiece.  “What happens when the people we count on to hold it together are barely holding it together themselves?” That question gives a synopsis of the movie at hand, and really explains the life of Dr. Carter (not to be confused with Little Wayne), as shrink of the stars.

Like many of the characters throughout the films this year Kevin Spacey (Dr. Carter) is haunted by a mistake from his past. So much so that his life appears to be in ruins, even though he is the one who is supposed to be helping others.

The film begins in Dr Carter’s home, and he is clearly in despair, waking up disshevelled next to a bottle of alcohol. Throughout the film, he attempts to help others while battling with his own demons, some of which he conquers, others of which he does not. One really strong suit to the movie was that each individual character was utterly unique, with problems of their own that needed to be solved. It was very interesting to watch the character development and note how they fed off one another. Each individual’s problem was the answer to another’s, and it was very interesting to see how they all tied together.

In terms of the acting, it was a cut above. The director of the film Jonas Pate did an excellent job of casting, and while the film only contained one “A list” actor, everyone else had very reputable names. I take that back, while not possessing an integral role and was there more for the comedic aspect of it, the two of them combined an exceptional on screen chemistry. Pell James, as well as Keke Palmer both had important roles and passed with flying colors.

While the film having a serious aspect and message, it had very comical aspects as well. The shrink of the stars, being a pothead was an ongoing joke throughout the entire film. The character Jesus, also starring in Friday Night Lights, provided a slight sense of humor as well as symbolism. Christmas in Vietnam is never to be reckoned with, in which you will understand upon the viewing of this movie. This was by far the second best movie I saw at Sundance, and would be extremely surprised if this were the last stop. Overall I give it a 9 out of 10, with a phenomenal Q and A session after the showing. 

Tags: Alex McDonald, kevin spacey, shrink

This entry was posted on Sunday, January 25th, 2009 at 1:58 am and is filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.