When I bought the ticket to go see "28 Days," the two elderly women behind me asked me what it was about. All I knew was that it starred Sandra Bullock (one of my favorite actresses) and that it was a comedy. Well, turns out there's a whole lot more to this film.
"28 Days" is more the psychological drama than the conventional romantic comedy. Anyone hoping to see Sandy reprise her "While You Were Sleeping" character will be disappointed. Her character, Gwen, is supposed to be a journalist, but really her forte is alcoholism and pill-popping, which she utilizes when she ruins older sister Lily's (Elizabeth Perkins) wedding by showing up drunk, knocking over the cake, and crashing the limo. The courts decide that Gwen must spend four weeks at a rehab center called Serenity Glen, where she is surrounded by kooky characters (portrayed by some very talented actors such as Alan Tudyk, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Reni Santoni, Diane Ladd, etc.) who chant and find "Lean on Me" appealing. This is where most of the story takes place, as Gwen must learn, with the help of the other 12-steppers as well as concerned counselor Shaw (Steve Buscemi), that people who go through life sober can be very, very happy.
What struck me initially about the film was that it began with a psychedelic, confusing opening scene involving drink, dance, and sex. Gwen and Jasper, her sometimes charming, mostly loathsome beau (Dominic West), dance to The Clash's "Should I Stay or Should I Go," and I instantly wondered if the two old women in the audience with me were enjoying themselves. Later instances of this psychedelic, psychological trip into Gwen's mind involved memories of her mother, whose motto was "If you're not having fun, what's the point?" These scenes are shot very well, in a painful to watch yellowish tinge (whose function is to make the memory painful), and hopefully Sandra will receive some Oscar consideration later this year when the Academy Award nominations are announced. At times I thought I was going to cry (which I rarely do), because I felt exactly how Sandra felt during her scenes staring at her own reflection in the mirror, feeling loneliness and the sense that her present is due to actions she'd made in the past. I must also commend the direction of Betty Thomas, who made a seemingly run-of-the-mill romantic comedy into a serious case study into the lives of people, regular people like you and me, living with addictions.
The supporting cast is wonderful, especially Azura Skye as Gwen's teenaged roommate Andrea, whose addiction includes heroin and a soap opera named "Santa Cruz"; Viggo Mortensen as a baseball pitcher spending twenty-eight days of his own at Serenity Glen; Alan Tudyk as a funny foreigner whose various quips add humor to the mostly serious story; and Dominic West as Gwen's boyfriend, whose addictions are even worse than Gwen's, though he seems to know how to handle them. But this film belongs to Sandra Bullock. When Lily tells Gwen in the beginning of the film, "You make it impossible to love you," over the course of the film you'll find yourself falling in love with Gwen, and with Sandra Bullock. Considering her earlier films "Speed," "While You Were Sleeping," "Forces of Nature," etc., you're quick to conclude at the end of this one that this is Bullock's best film to date. She's beautiful and talented, and when she cries, you cry. Bullock has this kind of glow about her only a handful of actresses possess: the power to affect those around her even with a simple smile or blink of the eyes or nod of the head. There is no way you can leave the movie theater without feeling affected by Sandra's performance. Gwen is witty, beautiful, amusing, etc.; the possibility of loving Gwen/Sandra is tremendous. By film's end, you'll conclude that this is Sandra's best performance to date, and that this is her time to shine.
"28 Days" is more the psychological drama than the conventional romantic comedy. Anyone hoping to see Sandy reprise her "While You Were Sleeping" character will be disappointed. Her character, Gwen, is supposed to be a journalist, but really her forte is alcoholism and pill-popping, which she utilizes when she ruins older sister Lily's (Elizabeth Perkins) wedding by showing up drunk, knocking over the cake, and crashing the limo. The courts decide that Gwen must spend four weeks at a rehab center called Serenity Glen, where she is surrounded by kooky characters (portrayed by some very talented actors such as Alan Tudyk, Marianne Jean-Baptiste, Reni Santoni, Diane Ladd, etc.) who chant and find "Lean on Me" appealing. This is where most of the story takes place, as Gwen must learn, with the help of the other 12-steppers as well as concerned counselor Shaw (Steve Buscemi), that people who go through life sober can be very, very happy.
What struck me initially about the film was that it began with a psychedelic, confusing opening scene involving drink, dance, and sex. Gwen and Jasper, her sometimes charming, mostly loathsome beau (Dominic West), dance to The Clash's "Should I Stay or Should I Go," and I instantly wondered if the two old women in the audience with me were enjoying themselves. Later instances of this psychedelic, psychological trip into Gwen's mind involved memories of her mother, whose motto was "If you're not having fun, what's the point?" These scenes are shot very well, in a painful to watch yellowish tinge (whose function is to make the memory painful), and hopefully Sandra will receive some Oscar consideration later this year when the Academy Award nominations are announced. At times I thought I was going to cry (which I rarely do), because I felt exactly how Sandra felt during her scenes staring at her own reflection in the mirror, feeling loneliness and the sense that her present is due to actions she'd made in the past. I must also commend the direction of Betty Thomas, who made a seemingly run-of-the-mill romantic comedy into a serious case study into the lives of people, regular people like you and me, living with addictions.
The supporting cast is wonderful, especially Azura Skye as Gwen's teenaged roommate Andrea, whose addiction includes heroin and a soap opera named "Santa Cruz"; Viggo Mortensen as a baseball pitcher spending twenty-eight days of his own at Serenity Glen; Alan Tudyk as a funny foreigner whose various quips add humor to the mostly serious story; and Dominic West as Gwen's boyfriend, whose addictions are even worse than Gwen's, though he seems to know how to handle them. But this film belongs to Sandra Bullock. When Lily tells Gwen in the beginning of the film, "You make it impossible to love you," over the course of the film you'll find yourself falling in love with Gwen, and with Sandra Bullock. Considering her earlier films "Speed," "While You Were Sleeping," "Forces of Nature," etc., you're quick to conclude at the end of this one that this is Bullock's best film to date. She's beautiful and talented, and when she cries, you cry. Bullock has this kind of glow about her only a handful of actresses possess: the power to affect those around her even with a simple smile or blink of the eyes or nod of the head. There is no way you can leave the movie theater without feeling affected by Sandra's performance. Gwen is witty, beautiful, amusing, etc.; the possibility of loving Gwen/Sandra is tremendous. By film's end, you'll conclude that this is Sandra's best performance to date, and that this is her time to shine.