Customer Reviews

Wild Iris [VHS]

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This film is definately not for those who want something light and airy. The movie is about denial, disease, fear, avoidance and sadness. The actors that took on their parts were brave. I find this so wonderful that more and more actors are not shying away from parts that are heavy but can bring change to viewers. Well, the movie is about a controlling mother who is jealous of her daughter. The mother is played by one of my favorite actors, Gena Rowland. The daughter is played by another great actor, Laura Linney. Their relationship is based in anger, competition and jealously. The daughter shows her anger outright, the mother hides hers and displays sideways, with shame and guilt. The daughters child is extremely co-dependent, trying to keep everything okay, the responsible one, who has no friends and no self-esteem. They all live together and depend on Gena Rowlands, character, Min, for survival. The daughter is an alcoholic and can't break away from the pattern that holds her tied to her mother. The story builds tension and change finally comes. The performances don't hold anything back, the dialog is brutal and real. I would have given this 5 stars but it went a little to fast paced and could have used a little more development, other than that, it was a strong, powerful film and I am really glad I rented it.

Lisa Nary

WILD IRIS is a tough film to watch. Tough because the performances are so fine that the rather despicable characters are credible and three-dimensional enough to allow the viewer to see the rays of redemption beyond the confines of the their excesses.

Iris Bravard (Laura Linney) has lost her husband and lives as a single mother with her son Lonnie (Emile Hirsch), wholly dependent on alcohol to escape her intolerable life. Because of her inability to support herself and care for Lonnie, she is forced to take residence with her mother Minnie (Gena Rowlands) who runs a bridal shop and makes bridal gowns for a living. The re-uniting of mother and daughter is anything but placid and the two find themselves at odds on every issue. At the unfortunate core of the problem is Lonnie who suffers the eccentricities of both mother and grandmother.

Minnie is an optimist and continues to be supportive of Iris who in turn remains 'wild' and unable to conform to the demands of being a mother and to returning to the role of disciplined daughter simultaneously. The manner in which this bleak trio functions and manages to survive is the sad song that is sung here.

Though the movie is anything but uplifting, it is still a pleasure to observe actors of the quality of Rowlands and Linney ply their craft and even more of a pleasure to see how they interact in their roles here. Emile Hirsch remains a young actor who deserves our careful attention. Grady Harp, March 05

found this by accident- great movie! .great actors and its a make you think movie!

I rented this movie because of Laura Linney, Gena Rowlands and Emile Hirsch. These three actors are terrific, but unfortunately they cannot save this sorry excuse for a movie. This only showcases how important it is to have solid writing. Rather than letting the audience figure out some things by themselves, the status quo of every character is spelled out in marquee-sized letters, sometimes in trite dialog, more likely to be found in an afternoon soap. Don't bother with this film. If you want to see a great movie with these stars, check out You Can Count on Me (Laura Linney), Hysterical Blindness (Gena Rowlands) and The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys (Emile Hirsch).