The Upside of Anger is a movie that was directed by Mike Binder and which stars the likes of Joan Allen, Kevin Costner, Keri Russell, Erika Christensen, Alicia Witt, and Evan Rachael Wood. The basic storyline surrounds Allen as being a typical suburban wife and mother, whose life suddenly turns upside down when her husband disappears. Allen, who plays Terry Wolfmeyer in the movie, is left alone to deal with her four daughters (Russell, Christensen, Witt, and Wood).
The Upside of Anger immediately lurches into the simultaneously delicate and yet banal business of Terry's anger, as well as the obvious bewilderment and confusion of the four daughters in regards to their father's sudden, unexpected, and unexplained absence. The Upside of Anger does not do much in regards to offering anything in the way of complexity or sense, but rather offers that of a smug observation posing as insight and judgment posing as sympathy.
In The Upside of Anger we see into Terry's life as she struggles with the absence of her husband, and as she begins to involve alcohol more and more into her life in order to deal with her problems. Costner enters the movie as Denny, who was once a superb baseball star, and who plays the comforting and new man in Terry's life.
Here it is basically Denny's mission to rescue Terry, however the displeasures between Denny and Terry do not go unnoticed, and as they both begin drinking a lot, and we see how Terry's response to trouble is ferocious; she continuously talks about how she hates her absent husband and how throughout the entire movie she is seemingly trying to get the children to feel volatile towards him as well, although it comes across as forcing.
Hadley ends up getting pregnant through the movie, while Emily the aspiring ballet dancer stops eating, Popeye pours her observations into a class project, and Andy begins working as a PA for Denny's radio show, and she ends up sleeping with Denny's sleazy producer, Shep Goodman.
Overall this movie is one of great interest and commonality, and we can all associate things with our own lives into parts of this movie. It is truly one of modernity and taste, and gives all viewers incredibly important and significant thoughts to ponder about. Even though at first you may not see these similarities, by the end of the movie they will be unavoidably obvious.
