Grace Is Gone (2007)

Director:

James C. Strouse

Writer (WGA):

James C. Strouse (written by)

Release Date:

10 January 2008 (Israel)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Upon hearing his wife was killed in the Iraq war, a father takes his two daughters on a road trip.

Plot Keywords:

Trip | Iraq War | Store | Minnesota | Amusement Park

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Golden Globes. Another 4 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

John Cusack	...	Stanley Phillips
Emily Churchill	...	First Woman
Rebecca Spence	...	Second Woman
Jennifer Tyler	...	Third Woman
Susan Messing	...	Fourth Woman
Shélan O'Keefe	...	Heidi Phillips
Gracie Bednarczyk	...	Dawn Phillips
Doug Dearth	...	Captain Riggs
Doug James	...	Chaplain Johnson
Alessandro Nivola	...	John Phillips
Zach Gray	...	Boy at Pool (as Zachary Gray)
Marisa Tomei	...	Woman at Pool
Penny Slusher	...	Ear Piercer
Dana Lynne Gilhooley	...	Grace Phillips
Mary Kay Place	...	Woman at Funeral

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for thematic material, brief strong language and teen smoking.

Runtime:

85 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

USA:PG-13 (certificate #43815) | Singapore:PG | Australia:M | Netherlands:6 | Philippines:PG-13 (MTRCB) | Finland:K-7 | Argentina:13 | South Korea:All

Filming Locations:

725 9th Avenue, La Grange, Illinois, USA

Company:

Plum Pictures

Trivia:

The film was originally going to be directed by Rob Reiner, who dropped out during pre-production for unknown reasons. The film's writer, James C. Strouse, then took over directorial duties.

Goofs:

Errors in geography: Grace dies in March, but the trees are in full bloom and the grass is green in Minnesota. This would not be the case until late April, early May.

Quotes:

John Phillips: It's important that people have their own views based on an understanding of facts. But, it's also important not to trust the facts, because most of them are lies.
Heidi Phillips: I don't get it.
John Phillips: It basically comes down to a gut thing. You just have to be open to allowing for a truth which differs from your own opinions. Or else you'll never actually see the truth at all.

Movie Connections:

Features Dance Dance Revolution (1998) (VG)

Soundtrack:

Gimme Gimme

A Nutshell Review: Grace is Gone

John Cusack is one of the character actors I admire. And in Grace is Gone, it centers upon his ability to bring you into his character's world. He really transformed himself into the role of Stanley Philipps with his thick glasses, walking with an instep, and that little hunch and a paunch, and delivers probably one of his finer touches in disappearing into a character that's so everyday average joe. He's a salaryman earning his keep while watching over his two girls while Mrs Grace Philipps (Dana Lynne Gilhooley) is a career soldier who gets her tour of duty in Iraq.

The crux of the entire story laid on the premise of Stanley trying to find the appropriate moment to tell his children about the unfortunate demise of their mother, while at the same time fighting hard to accept the bitter truth that the woman he loves is gone. More so of course when it is revealed later some things that can no longer be reversed in time, which makes it all the more sad, and regrettable.

But we also learn more about Stanley through the eyes of his children, when they throw the occasional tantrum, or have issues to deal with. Shelan O'Keefe as Heidi the older daughter, is a remarkable actress, lending some gravitas to her role when it called for it, and holds her own opposite Cusack very well. Gracie Bednarczyk as younger daughter Dawn I guess was just being herself, injecting much needed effervescence to counter the heavy drama that circulates throughout the movie.

Besides some expected and really moving scenes in the movie, some from plot devices, while others from the characters themselves, writer-director James C. Strouse also managed to sneak in a comment or two about War and Truth, which is what we make it up to be, most of the time. Alessandro Nivola also turned in a rather short but nice performance behind that heavily bearded appearance as the brother of Stanley and the children's uncle.

If I need another plus point to recommend Grace is Gone, then it will be the score by Clint Eastwood (yes, what a surprise when the end credits rolled), punctuating the story neatly when it called for it. All in all, a story without any major plot twists (since the title already said it all), simple yet effective, and hinged very much on excellent acting to bring the characters to life.