Junebug
Sony Pictures Classics | Release Date: August 3, 2005
7.9
USER SCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 106 Ratings
USER RATING DISTRIBUTION
Positive:
82
Mixed:
18
Negative:
6
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User Reviews

User scoreBy dateMost helpful
10
RonaldM.Apr 4, 2006
This is a great film. In the tradition of Jean Renior and Robert Altman it captures the nuances of life. Sometimes funny, sometimes sad. It is as unpredictable as life.
1 of 1 users found this helpful
9
TimothyD.Jan 28, 2006
Not perfect, but excellent. A complex ensemble piece built around great acting and writing, each character being given the chance to show who they are through finely observed action (or inaction) and dialogue. Top-notch American indie filmmaking.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
8
KeithFeb 7, 2006
A lovely and thoughtful film. It demonstrates the complex nature of familial relationships in wonderfully subtle story-telling. It is not a perfect film--the first hour or so contains scenes awkwardly directed and acted (particularly by A lovely and thoughtful film. It demonstrates the complex nature of familial relationships in wonderfully subtle story-telling. It is not a perfect film--the first hour or so contains scenes awkwardly directed and acted (particularly by Davidtz and McKenzie), but the second half is full of quiet revelations. Adams has garnered much praise and all is deserved. Her performance is so natural and effortless she threatens to steal the whole thing. I look forwad to seeing her career take-off from here. All in all, an excellent movie, full of wonderful moments and much to say about how family histories are permanent and deep-rooted and ongoing. Not even romantic love can knock the house off its foundation.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
9
LindaD.Oct 19, 2005
I loved this movie. It challenges the viewer to see the characters from the inside out, and it takes compassion and empathy to understand and respect them and their choices. Some viewers will get it, some won't. I suspect it will be I loved this movie. It challenges the viewer to see the characters from the inside out, and it takes compassion and empathy to understand and respect them and their choices. Some viewers will get it, some won't. I suspect it will be those who have a hard time walking in someone else's shoes that won't. The performances were right on. Although this takes place in the South, it is really about people with small vision forced to expand their minds, and the pain that causes.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
9
PaulHOct 9, 2005
I thought it was great film, very true when it dealt with family problems, I saw a little of my own family in there.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
10
JulieL.Feb 27, 2006
Don't believe the people who say there's no story to this film. This is about how surprised we can be by the hidden baggageand/or histories that the people we love carry around with them. The fact that a classy New-York gallery Don't believe the people who say there's no story to this film. This is about how surprised we can be by the hidden baggageand/or histories that the people we love carry around with them. The fact that a classy New-York gallery owner can be completely clueless about the extended family of her husband is just the beginning - I challenge anyone to sit through the scene where her husband sings an old-fashioned hymn at a church potluck and not be as amazed as his she is. We are all of us strange and unknowable and many-faced, and people still love us. What a miracle. And the movie reminds us of that. Amy Adams is fantastic and gets most of the attention, but watch the people in smaller roles, too - the mother-in-law, played by the great character actress Celia Weston, deserved an Oscar nomination, too. And Scott Wilson as the dad is a model of self-negation. Great performances all around. If we were more comfortable with quiet, reflective movies, this would have made the Oscar list for Best Picture.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
10
TimL.Mar 1, 2006
the entire cast worked so well together,it seemed like any disfunctional family. Ashley was so full of energy, she keeps your attention and you wish you could be that positive,she lights up the room.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
7
ZachP.Aug 30, 2006
Yes, its not the best film in history. But no, its not the worst. The performance by Amy Adams is perfect,and there has never been an actress like her. Other than that, its still a great film about family, and features great performances.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
9
JimR.Aug 30, 2005
This a fine movie that respects all of its characters, when it could have easily turned all of them into cliches.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
7
RichardB.Sep 6, 2005
I have to say I expected more from this movie, more than another About Schmidt, Broken Flowers, Ingmar Bergman-lite mood piece about how human beings can't ever seem to connect. Not that I think emotional connections are easy, I just I have to say I expected more from this movie, more than another About Schmidt, Broken Flowers, Ingmar Bergman-lite mood piece about how human beings can't ever seem to connect. Not that I think emotional connections are easy, I just never understood how most of the characters in Junebug had ever been, or could ever be, connected, and I never got the feeling the filmmakers cared enough about any of them to really develop the connections. Sure, the sweet pregnant lady who won't shut up is appealing, but when did she find time to get so close to her brother-in-law that she relies on him in her darkest hour? He hasnt been home in 3 years, he didnt invite his family to his wedding, and when he finally does gets home, he mostly (except for a meal-eating montage) avoids everyone. His family is unbelievably inhospitable to his new wife, and barely talks to each other. In fact, (except for pregnant lady, gallery gal and crazyass artist guy) no one in this movie talks enough to reveal who they are or why they're behaving as they do. Yeah, I know, there really are lots of families who really dont talk to each other, but my problem with this particular movie family's failure to communicate is that its neither dramatic or artistically useful. There are hints of good story-telling in the father-to-be's poignant attempt to share the tv meerkats with his wife, or the older brothers's hymn-singing moment, but mostly we get way too many long silences and overly lingering images. "Profound", like some existentialist's idea of a Hallmark card. See a bleak and barren vista, read the caption, "Not thinking of you." Call it "Sentimental Cynicism", and its a lazy kind of story-telling. In the bizarro world of the sentimentally cynical, there are still predictabley melodramatic plot twists, but a crisis doesnt bring out the best in anyone. People dont rise to the occasion, they just slink away. The critical consensus on Junebug seems to be that its something new, an insider's guide to the new South, tinged with an Altmanesque satire on how ironic Northeners behave badly when confronted unexpectedly with unfamiliar concepts like true religion and close family ties. I was just disappointed by its lack of imagination.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
9
StephanieK.Feb 12, 2006
This movie understands the complexity of family ties--how we are all products of our upbringing, and that we have unbreakable ties to our parents and siblings, no matter how much time and space separates us from one another. [***SPOILERS***] This movie understands the complexity of family ties--how we are all products of our upbringing, and that we have unbreakable ties to our parents and siblings, no matter how much time and space separates us from one another. [***SPOILERS***] When George returns to his North Carolina roots accompanied by his new wife, we see him utterly relax (note how often he sleeps in the movie, one time even drooling on the living room couch) and, during key moments, fit right back into his initial mileu. Yet Madeleine's presence reveals the complex interactions and ferocious tensions that permeate this family. When Ashley loses her baby, we see the film maker's dominant metaphor: When families grow, sometimes the process is painful, awkward, and even aborted. But the families endure and the individuals go off in their own directions while never quite losing touch with their origins. These people simultaneously know each other better than anyone else while still remaining isolated and incomprehensible to each other. The mother cries alone in her bedroom, the father isolates himself in his workshop, and the younger brother as built a protective shell of sullen silence and hostility. At the heart of the family is the wide-eyed, innocent daughter-ink-law, Ashley. Her uninhibited generosity of spirit shines hopefully in the face of the dark emotional complexities of this family (symbolized by the tangled woods that surround this middle-class ranch house). By the end of the film, we come to see the huge distances--even outright dislike--that divide the individual family members, but when Madeleine finds her father-in-law's missing screw driver, we see that each family member has a role to play in establishing order and form in a family. Each addition to the family changes the shape and definition of the unit. These family members love and hate, share and withhold, praise and criticize; they build up and destroy. But their ties are unbreakable. As George drives away, we can understand why he says he is glad to be getting out of there, but we can feel pretty sure that inevitably he will be returning to these people with whom he is more intimately connected than anyone else he nows. This is an excellent and perceptive movie that never patronizes the Southern family it spotlights, nor mocks the city-dweller Madeleine who reconfigures the family nucleus into which she marries.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
7
DanC.Mar 5, 2006
Thought I'd like it a lot more. My kind of movie, in theory - small, character-driven, slightly off-center. But I found the husband to be a non-entity, and the wife to be a bit of a blank slate as well. Not only weren't the Thought I'd like it a lot more. My kind of movie, in theory - small, character-driven, slightly off-center. But I found the husband to be a non-entity, and the wife to be a bit of a blank slate as well. Not only weren't the conflicts resolved, they were utterly suppressed - past the point of basic believability. I expected a better film. Amy Adams is wonderful, but everyone else seems to be asleep at the wheel.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
8
BillB.Apr 17, 2006
A second viewing has made me even more appreciative than the first. There is more detail to see and hear than I could absorb in the first sitting. My wife and I have been talking about it for two days, noticing new things and appreciating A second viewing has made me even more appreciative than the first. There is more detail to see and hear than I could absorb in the first sitting. My wife and I have been talking about it for two days, noticing new things and appreciating new thoughts. The women are all strong but in different ways. Family does matter, and we've all got one. What we do is more important than what we say. Love is action more than feeling. This is a special and memorable movie.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
10
JulieJ.Apr 3, 2006
spot-on, with terrific casting and a wonderful script.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
8
StephenS.Aug 1, 2006
Phil Morrison announces himself as a name to watch with this one. This is no Sweet Home Alabama romp set in a cardboard South, everybody is suffering seriously from the human condition. Nobody gets the upper hand, neither the posh English Phil Morrison announces himself as a name to watch with this one. This is no Sweet Home Alabama romp set in a cardboard South, everybody is suffering seriously from the human condition. Nobody gets the upper hand, neither the posh English art dealer nor the North Carolina homebodies she visits with her new husband. The husband… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
10
janejNov 13, 2005
Perfect casting. Funny and bittersweet. As an added wonder, the portrait of a genuinely primitive artist.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
9
PaulaW.Oct 19, 2005
The best thing about Junebug are the dead-on renditions of a particular set of hideously awkward moments. Believe me, I've lived through the situation in which a brunette city girl with an international background meets her small-town The best thing about Junebug are the dead-on renditions of a particular set of hideously awkward moments. Believe me, I've lived through the situation in which a brunette city girl with an international background meets her small-town Southern inlaws, and they nailed it. The critics who didn't see this movie's perfect emotional pitch are just clueless. I especially liked Johnny: he is in such obvious pain, ducking every interaction, wanting to impress his wife and only succeeding in messing up her baby shower. Only a couple of missteps kept me from giving this a 10. First, while Embeth Davidtz did a brilliant job of acting a thankless part, she isn't devastatingly pretty enough, especially by Southern standards, especially compared with Amy Adams, to justify the family's reaction to her. Second, although I loved the still shots of empty rooms, which to me were affectionate and very telling, I did get a whiff of the patronizing in the way the small town is portrayed: just how extraordinary is it that workers in a warehouse should be obsessed with football to the point of talking about it all day? I found that much less grotesque than I think the filmmakers wanted me to.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
10
DannyG.Aug 23, 2005
Great acting, especially from Amy Adams.
0 of 0 users found this helpful
9
ChrisC.Sep 16, 2005
To anyone who reads the reviews for this movie: go and yell at all the managers of the local 18-screen movie theaters who can't make the space for movies like Junebug. I live in San Diego and had to drive about 40 minutes just to go see To anyone who reads the reviews for this movie: go and yell at all the managers of the local 18-screen movie theaters who can't make the space for movies like Junebug. I live in San Diego and had to drive about 40 minutes just to go see this movie. It is just upsetting that Transporter 2 can play on three screens but they won't make room for movies like junebug. I remember feeling the same thing when I saw the Station Agent. Anyways, this movie was great. It's the kind of movie that most people would really enjoy if they just sat down and watched it. I know I've read plenty about how brilliant Amy Adams's performance is in this movie, but I have to say that her presence in the movie is worth the trip alone. This film is full of enough comedy as well as a great presentation of the fact that (as trite as it may sounds) families do not always, if ever, get along. The film deals with love, loss, anger, and forgiveness. This really is a great movie.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
9
ColbyC.Jan 18, 2006
while everyone will complement Amy Adams (and she's completely deserving of the praise she gets), this ensamble cast was amazing. Have you ever heard someone describe jazz as being beautiful for the notes that are NOT played? I never while everyone will complement Amy Adams (and she's completely deserving of the praise she gets), this ensamble cast was amazing. Have you ever heard someone describe jazz as being beautiful for the notes that are NOT played? I never understood that line until watching Junebug. This movie is great for the lines that are NOT said - meaning you have to gague the character's true feelings towards each other through limited interaction, and many times actions rather than words. I can understand that not everyone will enjoy this movie, but I was engrossed throughout, and will watch it many more times.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
9
ChadS.Feb 24, 2006
Ashley(Amy Adams) has so much life in her, and Johnny(Ben McKenzie) is such a putz, you sort of wish the filmmaker didn't invest the latter with a sympathetic side. If Johnny was irredeemable, "Junebug" would be criticized for turning Ashley(Amy Adams) has so much life in her, and Johnny(Ben McKenzie) is such a putz, you sort of wish the filmmaker didn't invest the latter with a sympathetic side. If Johnny was irredeemable, "Junebug" would be criticized for turning rural folks into hicks. One day in the not-too-distant future, Ashley is going to turn into her mother-in-law(Celia Weston). Johnny, as in Johnny-can't-read(he struggles with "Huckleberry Finn", and the Cliff Notes), doesn't deserve her. The film sort of obscures this fact. Amy Adams is great. She's sort of like a live-action Luanne(from "King of the Hill"). Madeleine(Embeth Davidtz), a purveyor of "outsider art", views Ashley more as a beguilling character than a person, like her litany of non-sequitirs were a brand of innocuous performance art. What Madeliene doesn't do at the end of the film is absolutely heartless. Ashley, at the very least, needs to enroll at a community college.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful
8
badgerAug 23, 2010
A film that I found quite scary though it wasn't a scary film by any means. How an outsider affects the nearest and dearest of your own nearest and dearest and left me wondering how I would myself, a Britisher like Embeth Davidz's character,A film that I found quite scary though it wasn't a scary film by any means. How an outsider affects the nearest and dearest of your own nearest and dearest and left me wondering how I would myself, a Britisher like Embeth Davidz's character, cope with a real American family. It felt so alien. I must see more of the Real America. New York it ain't!… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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8
ScraperJun 4, 2017
It must be said of this great American drama that Amy Adams gives a performance that absolutely cannot be denied. Set amongst a bullheaded array of washed-out southerners, she shines, displaying a range that you can't help but absorbIt must be said of this great American drama that Amy Adams gives a performance that absolutely cannot be denied. Set amongst a bullheaded array of washed-out southerners, she shines, displaying a range that you can't help but absorb completely. The mercurial Junebug is perfectly imperfect.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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7
Trev29May 31, 2013
The best parts of this movie are easily when Adams is on screen giving her hilarious and very moving performance. This is still her best work to date. However, when she is not on screen, the movie is filled with boring camera shots andThe best parts of this movie are easily when Adams is on screen giving her hilarious and very moving performance. This is still her best work to date. However, when she is not on screen, the movie is filled with boring camera shots and awkward conversations that try to pass as "art", but I am not convinced. It also dragged big time by the end, but it was still a somewhat satisfying little film.… Expand
0 of 0 users found this helpful00
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8
worleyjamersJun 7, 2013
A simple, yet profound picture of the family. Amy Adams is a revelation and is the real heart and soul of the film; she gives an adorable but tragic performance well deserving of her Oscar nomination.
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