Freeheld

Lionsgate | Release Date: October 2, 2015

7.5	USER SCORE Generally favorable reviews based on 40 Ratings

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foxgroveOct 4, 2015

Freeheld suffers from a severe belief in its own self- importance. It is one thing to champion a worthy cause, but quite another to make it vital, interesting and entertaining. The screenplay is so intent on making points about gay issuesFreeheld suffers from a severe belief in its own self- importance. It is one thing to champion a worthy cause, but quite another to make it vital, interesting and entertaining. The screenplay is so intent on making points about gay issues that the over statement causes the film to lose its rhythm. Ultimately it lacks bite and just doesn’t feel cinematic.
The performances of Julianne Moore and Ellen Page as the gay couple fighting for their due rights, after Moore develops cancer, are not always convincing. Early scenes of the two becoming acquainted are uncomfortably embarrassing and director Peter Sollett adds to this by including a corny montage showing the two women laughing, dancing and kissing. This device is just a lazy and uninspired way of moving the story forward.
Julianne Moore, who is almost the Queen of the controversial or cutting edge subject matter, is seemingly becoming more conventional on the evidence here. After her admittedly superior turn in ‘Still Alice’ she is in grave danger of becoming associated with TV style disease of the week movies. Whilst she does have two or three scenes that are undeniably moving there is a cloying manipulative feel to the emotion evoked. In the latter stages she almost disappears from proceedings only to be wheeled on (literally) at climatic moments with head shaved looking like a large hairless baby. That this evokes laughter rather than sympathy is entirely due to the phony and simplistic writing on display. Ellen Page has a lot less to do and her performance is just vanilla.
As for Steve Carell playing a gay activist, this has to be one of the worst most mis-judged performances in a serious movie for years. The performance is both broad and irritating and, contrary to audience reaction where it screened in Toronto, there is absolutely nothing funny in his playing of the way over the top character. He may be having fun but we definitely aren’t. It’s just a peculiar and jarring characterisation.
With all these disappointing, ineffective and just plain bad performances on view it is pleasing to report that at least Josh Charles and Michael Shannon deliver. Shannon, in particular, although still having to be a mouthpiece for obvious plot points and (over)statements at least injects some warmth into the worthiness of it all.
In the final analysis it’s rather telling when one highlights the end titles song as being the best thing in the film.… Expand

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

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MattBrady99Jan 21, 2016

Freeheld started off promising, with two solid performances from Moore and Page (Even when I didn't care for the chemistry between the two until the very end of film). But then the movie quickly dissolves away and turns into this flat,Freeheld started off promising, with two solid performances from Moore and Page (Even when I didn't care for the chemistry between the two until the very end of film). But then the movie quickly dissolves away and turns into this flat, mediocre movie. I wish the movie had more of a focus with the relationship and let things between them grow so we can relate to them more, but sadly the movie never dose that. What could have been a good movie, took a lot of things too safe.

I highly recommend seeing the 2007 Documentary short "Freeheld", which is far better than this.… Expand

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horrorliefhebMay 21, 2016

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. -Freeheld is a 2015 American drama film directed by Peter Sollett and written by Ron Nyswaner. The film stars Julianne Moore, Ellen Page, Steve Carell, Luke Grimes, and Michael Shannon. It is based on the 2007 documentary short film of the same name about police officer Laurel Hester's fight against the Ocean County, New Jersey Board of Chosen Freeholders to allow her pension benefits to be transferred to her domestic partner after being diagnosed with terminal cancer.

--Critical reception:

-Freeheld received mixed reviews from critics. Review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reports a 47% rating based on 88 reviews, with an average rating of 5.7/10. The consensus states: "Freeheld certainly means well, but its cardboard characters and by-the-numbers drama undermine its noble intentions." On Metacritic, the film has a 50 out of 100 rating based on 29 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".… Expand

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JLuis_001Sep 6, 2017

The story was good, but unfortunately did not work properly, what truly saves Freeheld from oblivion is the work of its two protagonists, and frankly the only reason to watch this film.

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KenRMar 26, 2023

Freeheld – Pushes a half-filled Barrow Based loosely on true events, Freeheld is a sad story, and we can feel for the plight of lesbians Laurel Hester and Stacie Andree in their quest to choose their financial beneficiaries on death. Yet forFreeheld – Pushes a half-filled Barrow Based loosely on true events, Freeheld is a sad story, and we can feel for the plight of lesbians Laurel Hester and Stacie Andree in their quest to choose their financial beneficiaries on death. Yet for all its makers’ intentions, what comes through is just another flat agenda pushing production, consisting of stereotypical performances and telegraphed movie-making. The obvious casting choices were all designed to make the viewer ‘sympathetic’ to the cause, and the lazy script simply expected everyone to be on-board with its strained, one sided message. Steve Carell’s performance as the homosexual Jewish rabbi was so over the top as to be more of a cartoon caricature, generating more annoyance than sympathy. Then there’s the somewhat ill-informed priest, who comes forth to give evidence in court to convince us that Jesus said ‘nothing’ against Homosexuality. He clearly never read Christ’s very own forthright claim that; “He never came to change one iota of his father’s law”. That means nothing, not even the dot of an i or the cross of a t; all which went before, holds. Some might attempt to reduce these down to technicalities, but when being presented in a court of law, they count. What have we witnessed since same sex marriage became law? Is love still love or has the hate increased amongst so many other diverse groups now clamoring to be ‘accepted’? By all means yes, change the contractual equality laws between couples - Presently, we even have a call to accept the perversions of pornographic ‘comic book style’ literature and cross-dressing men graphically grooming children in schools and libraries across the land. What’s to be ‘proud’ of in these activities? Maybe it’s even time to reel in some of these watered down laws and accept that obscenity is now thriving and attempting to take over many of our vital human qualities - all so particular selfish individuals can overindulge their perversions in the name of ‘Diversification & inclusion’. Laws can only be pushed so far then sadly, they fall over, serving no good cause. The failure of this picture to find an appreciative audience speaks for itself and while there will always be those who will… Expand

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