The Family Stone (2005)

User Rating:

6.3/10   

Director:

Thomas Bezucha

Writer (WGA):

Thomas Bezucha (written by)

Release Date:

16 December 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Feel The Love.

Plot:

An uptight, conservative, businesswoman accompanies her boyfriend to his eccentric and outgoing family's annual Christmas celebration and finds that she's a fish out of water in their free-spirited way of life.

Plot Keywords:

Christmas | Deaf | Secret | Ring | Brother In Law

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe. Another 1 win & 6 nominations

Cast

Claire Danes	...	Julie Morton
Diane Keaton	...	Sybil Stone
Rachel McAdams	...	Amy Stone
Dermot Mulroney	...	Everett Stone
Craig T. Nelson	...	Kelly Stone
Sarah Jessica Parker	...	Meredith Morton
Luke Wilson	...	Ben Stone
Tyrone Giordano	...	Thad Stone (as Ty Giordano)
Brian J. White	...	Patrick Thomas (as Brian White)
Elizabeth Reaser	...	Susannah Stone Trousdale
Paul Schneider	...	Brad Stevenson
Savannah Stehlin	...	Elizabeth Trousdale
Jamie Kaler	...	John Trousdale
Robert Dioguardi	...	David Silver
Carol Locatell	...	Jeweler

Also Known As:

Hating Her (USA) (working title)
Untitled Thomas Bezucha Project (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for some sexual content including dialogue, and drug references.

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | American Sign Language

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS | DTS

Certification:

USA:PG-13 | Singapore:PG | UK:PG | Ireland:PG | Netherlands:MG6 | Canada:G (Quebec) | Canada:PG (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba/Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Finland:K-3 | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Taiwan:GP | Sweden:Btl | Mexico:B | Sweden:7 | Argentina:Atp | Brazil:12 | Iceland:L | Malaysia:U | Hungary:14 | Australia:M | Portugal:M/12 | Germany:6 | South Korea:15 | Spain:13

Filming Locations:

Connecticut, USA

Company:

The Family Stone

Trivia:

Luke Wilson chipped a tooth while filming this movie and asked Diane Keaton to recommend a dentist. Keaton decided to play a joke on him and, when he called the number she had given him, it was actually the number to a psychologist.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Ben is telling Meredith not to dilly dally, his shirt is outside of his pants. Then when he is talking to Everett it is tucked inside his pants.

Quotes:

Ben Stone: [quoting ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ before he lights the tree] "And now," cried Max, "Let the wild rumpus start."

Movie Connections:

References The Princess Bride (1987)

Soundtrack:

O Little Town of Bethlehem

Comedy et tragedy

The Family Stone covers three days in the life of the title family, Christmas Eve, Christmas and, briefly, the following Christmas so that it can wrap up the multiple story lines of the plot. One of the things I like about the movie is that this is not in your face as far as the tragedy part, no more than a few lines in a couple of scenes.

Sarah Jeessica Parker plays against her type, a stuffy, straight-laced businesswoman and does a surprisingly good job throughout the movie. Luke Wilson is at his best, the laid-back brother to Dermot Mulroney who is called upon the bring Parker down to earth and Mulroney is the somewhat confused suitor who... well, you will just have to watch the movie.

Craig T. Nelson also gets kudos for keeping you interested in his character. He plays Diane Keaton's husband and Keaton, one of the best actresses, sparkles. The film doesn't waste any time with character introduction, getting right into the plot but gives you time during the movie to see what each character is about. I took off a point because the movie is predictable to a degree.