The Kids Are All Right is a thoroughly entertaining slice-of-life domestic drama about two kids who look up their sperm-donor father, causing cataclysmic changes in the family dynamic. Not a unique premise save that the parents of the kids happen to be lesbians.

The entire cause célèbre for this film is to show straight America how "normal" gay families are and that they shouldn't be afraid of "gay marriage" or "gay parenting," thus it doesn't delve too deep or wander too far off topic. Political film making is a tricky business. You'll remember the Tom Hanks drama Philadelphia was maligned by the LGBT activist fringe for all the issues it didn't address; to which my answer has always been: it's a two hour film, if you add too many spicy issues you're left with an unpalatable polemic.

The script and direction by Lisa Cholodenko (High Art) are tight, well focused and only occasionally heavy-handed. Her characters are fresh, while being stereotypically familiar to pre-conditioned movie-goers. These are folks we know, people we work with and/or live in our neighborhood: "normal" people. Is it perfect? No; there an almost fatally flawed plot contrivance that seems only there to provide the filmmaker an all too easy source of conflict.

What elevates the film above the run-of-mill movie-of-the-week domestic drama is the acting. Annette Benning is staggeringly good as the head of her household - the alpha female in this case. Her performance is embarrassingly rich; she presents a myriad of conflicting emotions, each one immediately recognizable, true and never over played. Julianne Moore turns in a lovely portrait of the less-successful, less self-assured partner. Mark Ruffalo is a revelation as a forty-something man finally approaching adulthood; a free-spirit, still capable of making disastrously foolish decisions in his pursuit to find personal fulfillment. Mia Wasikowska and Josh Hutcherson are always on target as the kids, conveying the perfect blend of angst and innocence.

Just as they did with Juno and Little Miss Sunshine, the film community is falling all over themselves hyping this. Like those films, The Kids Are All Right is an entertaining, socially relevant effort and deserving of quantified praise; but don't be mislead, it's not Citizen Kane.

Yes, this movie is probably being at least a little overpraised by the critics. I suspect many of them consider it "brave" for a film to depict an ordinary American family, whose parents just happen to be lesbians. Let's face it, awards voters and critics love anything that deals with race, homosexuality, or any of the other hot-button social topics (witness the dreck known as "Crash" winning Best Picture a few years ago).

None of which is meant to detract from The Kids are All Right, which is still quite an enjoyable small film. The acting especially is uniformly good. Annette Bening is sure to receive an Oscar nomination (well deserved), for her fantastic performance as Nic, the tightly-wound, more responsible half of the married couple formed by herself and Julianne Moore. Moore is also excellent playing Jules, a more aimless free-spirit type - their differences are a source of much of the comedy in the film. In all respects but their sexual orientation, they are a typical suburban married couple, with all the happiness and challenges that entails.

Mark Ruffalo continues to be one of the most reliably good actors working today. He gives another standout performance as Paul, the biological father of Nic's daughter Joni and Jules' son Laser. As is often the case in his other films, Ruffalo's acting has such ease and charm that he makes his performance look deceptively easy. In lesser hands the character of Paul could have been the stereotypical charming bad-boy we've seen before in movies a million times. But Ruffalo gives him a warmth and humanity that makes the audience root for him (even when he screws up).

My biggest complaint about the film was with a major plot twist involving Jules and Paul that seemed completely out of character to me. I realize the director was trying to comment on how Paul's more accepting nature gave Jules something she was not getting from her wife Nic - but the way it was done in the film strained credibility. I also thought the script was rather mean in its treatment of Paul in general... he was basically just discarded at the end of the film without even a chance at an apology. Meanwhile, Jules makes a rather pat speech about marriage, all is forgiven, and we get a pat and not-very-satisfying ending. The film seemed to border on being anti-male, at least that was my perception.

A word about the 2 young actors who play the kids... they both give fantastic, natural performances and are clearly talents to keep watching for as their careers progress.

Overall the great acting is what carries the rather slight story, and it is worth watching for Bening's performance alone (both she and Moore are completely believable as a lesbian couple, for what it's worth). While I do not think it is Best Picture material, it is an enjoyable and occasionally moving portrayal of an almost-typical American family.

I found this movie to be very well-acted and well-directed.
The sexual scenes didn't bother me not one bit, like some of the other reviewers.
I mean, COME ON!!---This is life in the 21st Century!--Grow up already!
People get naked and they interact, okay?---Thank goodness that computers and gadgets
haven't spoiled that for us (yet!), as it has with basic conversational skills and other forms
of by-gone or slowly dying human interaction.

I actually know both a lesbian couple, as well as a gay male couple who
are living similar circumstances as in the premise of this movie.
I found it very modern, refreshing, and mature in it's approach to the subject matter.
I have long been a fan of Mark Ruffalo, Julianne Moore and Annette Benning's work,
and I also thought "the kids" themselves did an excellent job at portraying their roles.
My problem was in that I felt like the Mark Ruffalo character kind of had his once happy
and balanced, (for him), life just upheaved and torn apart when he gets contacted by these "kids",
who of course, have every right to know who their father / donor was, and also what his background is.
Ruffalo's character had a great attitude (I thought) about the whole thing...
He was naturally pensive and cautious at first, though not in a malicious way, but soon warmed to the
idea that he had these "kids" in his life now, and was more than open to getting to know them, and allow
them to get to know him. I felt that Annette Benning's character, who felt threatened, in addition to just
being an anal-retentive, controlling witch with a capital B, was very mean and cold towards Ruffalo's character.
Julianne Moore's character was a bit of a messy, confused, psychological user.

Moore's character is that kind of person who is filled with inner turmoil or frustration, but makes it everybody
else's problem around her. I hated how she treated the latino gardener too, just because she felt guilty
about all of the drama and calamity that she was causing in her affair with Ruffalo's character!
I always say: "Don't jump in the river, if you're not a strong swimmer, babe!" (-:

Ruffalo's character was the perfect outlet for her pent up sexual confusion / tension,
and the two (again) enter into a very complicated and torrid affair, which of course, could
only end in heartache for all concerned. As soon as Moore's character quenches her sexual thirst/curiosity,
she just basically returns back to her life relationship Benning's character and the "kids",
after she and Ruffalo's character are found out, and they all seem to throw Ruffalo's character under the bus...
As if to say, "Okay babe, we've all uprooted you from your life, and now we're done with ya!--So ummmm---kay, bye!"

This kind of left a bad taste in my mouth, as Ruffalo's character is literally left
on the outside looking in, as Benning & Moore & the kids reunion-reconnection happens without him.
He is locked out of their lives...Lives that he really never knew exsisted in the first place,
until they invaded his, satiated their curiosity, and sent him packing.
Not cool, I felt. )-:
Not saying that Ruffalo's character was a saint or anything, but the man had his own business
and his own life...as unorthodox as it was...but then again, wasn't Benning, Moore and the kids' lives
just as unorthodox? I guess I just wished that a balance could've been reached between all parties,
and it could've ended on that note, instead of Ruffalo's character, who btw, he played with a great spirit
& optimism, being dejected and disregarded. Just my humble opinion of course. (-:
I still enjoyed this movie though, despite its (what I considered to be) plot flaws. **4 Stars**