I first came across esteemed playwright Kenneth Lonergan when I saw the much-touted production of his This Is Our Youth the year before last. Since then I’ve kept meaning to follow up and finally got one more step down the road in watching his celluloid directorial debut, You Can Count On Me.
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You Can Count on Mestarts with a terrible car crash that instantly orphans a little boy ... more
and his older sister. At film's end, that boy, now a grown-up nomad and ne'er-do-well, takes off by Greyhound bus after a brief reunion with his sister, who lives a...
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You Can Count on Mestarts with a terrible car crash that instantly orphans a little boy ... more
and his older sister. At film's end, that boy, now a grown-up nomad and ne'er-do-well, takes off by Greyhound bus after a brief reunion with his sister, who lives a...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
One of the best American films of 2000! -Richard Schickel Time Magazine Winner of the ... more
Best Picture and Best Screenplay awards at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival 'You Can Count On Me' has been hailed as the best American movie of the year 2000. Laur...
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Oscar-nominated Laura Linney stars as Sammy Prescott, a single mother who has lived all ... more
her life in Scottsville, New York. Now she's raising her 8-year-old son there, enjoying the peace of the family home and security of her job at the bank, blotting o...
Production Year: 2004 - Drama - Director: Nick Cassavetes - Original Language: English - Classification: 15 years and over, 12 years and over - Starring: Rachel McAdams, Ryan Gosling, Gena Rowlands
Advantages: excellent human drama Disadvantages: none
...watching his celluloid directorial debut, You Can Count On Me.
This simple tale of fraught familial relations stars the luminous Laura Linney in an Oscar nominated turn as Sammy Prescott, who has spent her whole life in Scottsville, New York, and has settled into a routine of being Lending Officer at the local bank, raising her son Rudy (Rory Culkin) as a single parent, and filing the correspondence she receives from her wayward brother, ... ...the picture.
You Can Count On Me sounds dreadful on paper. A story about an uptight chick learning from her pot-smoking brother, right? In theory. Except that it’s much, much better than that. Sammy as Linney skilfully plays her is a fully three-dimensional character, neither saint nor sinner. She is a church-going, adulterous, kind-hearted, forthright, generous smart-ass. She tries to be a good person, and she dresses formally and ... more
I first came across esteemed playwright Kenneth Lonergan when I saw the much-touted production of his This Is Our Youth the year before last. Since then I’ve kept meaning to follow up and finally got one more step down the road in watching his celluloid directorial debut, You Can Count On Me.
This simple tale of fraught familial relations stars the luminous Laura Linney in an Oscar nominated turn as Sammy Prescott, who has spent her whole life in Scottsville, New York, and has settled into a routine of being Lending Officer at the local bank, raising her son Rudy (Rory Culkin) as a single parent, and filing the correspondence she receives from her wayward brother, Terry (Mark Ruffalo in a career breakthrough performance). Over the course of a few months, however, her life seems to slowly revolve on its axis, as Terry returns home for an extended visit, her new boss (Matthew Broderick) gives her no end of trouble and her commitment-phobic ex (Jon Tenney) wanders back into the picture.
You Can Count On Me sounds dreadful on paper. A story about an uptight chick learning from her pot-smoking brother, right? In theory. Except that it’s much, much better than that. Sammy as Linney skilfully plays her is a fully three-dimensional character, neither saint nor sinner. She is a church-going, adulterous, kind-hearted, forthright, generous smart-ass. She tries to be a good person, and she dresses formally and takes pride in raising her son well, but she never claims to be the be-all and end-all. All of which could make Terry’s complaints that he always fails to reach her high standards seem like the whinings of a schoolboy if he were not portrayed with such human sensitivity by Ruffalo, who shuffles charmingly from scene to scene, fag dangling from mumbling lips, looking fetchingly wounded.
Between them, Linney and Ruffalo hit the nail on the head of sibling relationships; all their love, jealousies, resentment, affection and confusion are spread out gracefully and the chemistry between the leads is incredibly moving and affecting. Like real siblings they are at once both overly comfortable and uncomfortably awkward at times. Both are also generous in their scenes with fledgling Culkin Rory, who may be lacking the talent of Kieran, but at least he’s not Macaulay. A lot of the relationship between Terry and Sammy is played out via their interactions with her son, and as such he becomes a likeable lynchpin for the story to revolve around.
With a bunch of strong supporting performances and cameos from the likes of Josh Lucas and an excellent Lonergan himself, and a simple plot made up of a string of human dramas, there’s not too much more to be said without giving too much away. Like another excellent film, The Station Agent, the strength of You Can Count On Me is not in a particularly vibrant plot, or even in particularly clever wordsmithery, but in the subtle and real way that the complexities of family life are presented. And speaking of wordsmithery, this may lack the lightning-sharp wit of the likes of James Goldman or Paddy Chayesfsky, but Lonergan’s stellar talent lies in human dialogue. There are sharp retorts and clever asides, of course, but mostly there’s accessible, interesting and natural conversation… It’s sad that this has become a selling point, really, but there’s so much substandard scripting… oh, stop before I hark back to the good ol’ days. *rolls eyes*
Lonergan’s direction is simple and intimate, a handful of smooth opening shots drawing you into the action. A lot of the action is in close-up, the camera rarely backing away for a wide shot and the perspective low wherever possible, almost as if he’s looking from Rudy’s eye-level. The immediacy of someone who writes for the stage is clearly evident. As a debut (which Lonergan has not followed up, writing, instead, the screenplay for Gangs of New York for YCCOM’s executive producer Martin Scorsese) it’s a wonderful piece of work.
In terms of score, I have to admit, I didn’t really notice anything exceptional. Lesley Barber’s score seemed likeable enough, and songs included contributions from the likes of Steve Earle, Betty Sue Perry and Lola Jean Fawbush (mhm, I have no idea either). Oh, and some fella called Johann Sebastian Bach. All I can say is that it’s varied, and I had my usual reaction to a score I don’t really notice; if it didn’t annoy me, it must have been appropriate.
As far as turning human life inside out and presenting it with almost a neutral eye (Lonergan’s role as a dry, keen-eyed pastor seems to encapsulate his non-judgemental stance but there’s always SOME prejudice), this is an excellent example. Less grandiose a statement than the basically laboured American Beauty, and yet slightly less heartbreakingly charming than the brilliant The Station Agent, this is nonetheless a superb viewing experience.
Advantages: Reality of it all, performances, complex. Disadvantages: Won't work for those who want easy answers.
...is pretty dull. That You Can Count On Me shows this, and still manages to remain compelling throughout is an incredible feat.
We are offered a window into the life of Sammy (Laura Linney), an average woman in small-town America. This isn't the kind of place where people fulfil their dreams, but she is comfortable here. She raises her eight year old son Rudy (Rory Culkin) by herself, holds a reasonable job at the local bank and has a steady, if not ... ...skill of writer/director Kenneth Lonergan, You Can Count On Me has characters that speak like real people.
This benefits us as over the course of the story, we really do become emotionally invested in these characters. Nothing is simple here; every character questions even their own actions. After an encounter with Brian, Sammy goes to visit her priest. This is the kind of town where everybody knows everybody else, and so they skirt around the issue, ...
eddie7sf 16.10.2004
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of You Can Count On Me (DVD)
Advantages: refreshing, superb acting, great script. Disadvantages: none
...superbly casted, well directed (do you get the feeling I liked this film?).
Sammy Prescott (Laura Linney, Oscar nominee) plays a single mother staying in Scotsville. She is safe and comfortable in this typically depicted small American town where she is raising Rudy (Rory Culkin, yes the brother of the infamous little brat). She is stressed at work with the arrival of her new Boss (Mathew Broderick) and needs a break. A letter from her brother Terry ... ...as the autocratic boss and you can almost see somebody you know in him (honest boss, I'm not talking about you). Rory Culkin, cloned from the other Culkin plays his role well and is very likeable is little Rudy. (I think the Culkin's are mass producing these little stars in order to make money, once one of them burns out they will produce another).
The film was winner at the Sundance Film Festival (best picture, best screenplay), winner at the London ...
aitchison21 26.03.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of You Can Count On Me (DVD)
Advantages: Great acting... good plot...engaging... Disadvantages: None really...
...Time: 111 mins.
You Can Count On Me is the directorial debut of acclaimed playwright and screenwriter Kenneth Lonergan. Provocative, engaging, and at times most amusing, the film centres on the complex relationship between a single mother, her wayward brother and her 8 year old son. Sammy (played by Laura Linney, who received a Best Actress Academy Award nomination for her role) lives a neat, ordered, small town existence in Scotsville, NY. That ... ...Terry. Even at the beginning you get a real sense of the strong bond between them. One would certainly not begrudge Laura Linney her Oscar nomination, although it could be argued that Mark Ruffalo is just as worthy a candidate for his portrayal of the loveable, yet infuriating Terry. The bond that he forms with Sammy’s son Rudy (played competently by Macauley Culkin’s younger brother Rory), is at the same time heart-warming and distressing, ...
cribby 16.05.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of You Can Count On Me (DVD)
"...YOU CAN COUNT ON ME counts on great performances, and Linney, Ruffalo, Culkin and Broderick deliver..." (Box Office, p.231, 01/04/2000)
"...A film of great tender truth....This is one of the best movies of the year..." (Chicago Sun-Times, p.35, 17/11/2000)
"...Kenneth Lonergan knows what he's written and why he's written it....Even his tiniest moments ring true, which is why the ruefully funny dramatic comedy YOU CAN COUNT ON ME is such an exceptional debut..." (Los Angeles Times, p.C2, 10/11/2000)
"...[Linney] in her best screen performance....Pitch-perfect script and fine direction [by] Kenneth Lonergan..." (Movieline, p.39, 01/12/2000)
"...What keeps the film fresh and engrossing is the perceptive, acutely observed scripting..." (Sight and Sound, p.61, 01/04/2001)
"...A pair of charismatic performances from Linney and Mark Ruffalo....Matthew Broderick is in top form....Lonergan makes every moment count..." (Total Film, p.83, 01/04/2001)
"...This may be the best drama about what goes on behind closed doors in Anytown, USA, since AMERICAN BEAUTY....Linney is extraordinary..." -- 3 out of 4 stars (USA Today, p.8E, 10/11/2000)
DVD Description
Set in a small town in upstate New York, YOU CAN COUNT ON ME looks at a brother and sister who grew up together as orphans but now face life with very different perspectives. Sammy (Laura Linney) works at the local bank. Most of her attention goes into raising her 8-year-old son, Rudy (Rory Culkin), and drifting in a tepid romance with Bob (Jon Tenney). The first disruption to her dutiful routine arrives in the form of new bank manager Brian (Matthew Broderick), intent on whipping his employees into shape. Then Sammy's wayward brother, Terry (Mark Ruffalo) shows up after a long absence, and her happiness quickly turns sour when she realizes he has only come to ask for money--again. But with all the elements for a backwater soap opera in place, the story instead becomes a subtle portrait of good intentions and fractured relationships. First-time director Ken Lonergan was already a noted Hollywood screenwriter (ANALYZE THIS), but he saved his screenplay for himself. Avoiding both big-budget maudlin and low-budget posturing, he steers COUNT ON ME straight to the gut with an artful balance of pain and comedy. A good number of excellent performances, especially by Ruffalo as the screw-up Terry, turn the film into a remarkably honest and moving experience.
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