There is a contrived aspect to a lot of the action. But Roos' insights into parenting, friendship and, of course, love, more than make up for the sometimes forced path that leads to them.
Comment
07/15/05
Happy Endings (2005)
56
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:101
Fresh:57
Rotten:44
Average Rating:6/10
Consensus: Despite strong individual performances, the overlong, disjointed plot of Happy Endings self-indulgently rambles.
Runtime: 2 hrs 10 mins
Genre: Dramas
US Box Office: $1,172,987
Synopsis: Mamie is being blackmailed. This filmmaker named Nick claims to know Mamie’s son – the one she gave up for adoption – but Nick won’t introduce her to him unless he can film the reunion. Enter... [More]
Starring: Maggie Gyllenhaal, Tom Arnold, Jason Ritter, Laura Dern
Director: Don Roos
Reviews for Happy Endings
As bawdy, self-conscious, jaded and still sweetly optimistic as its double-entendre of a title suggests.
07/15/05
Top CriticThe writer and director Don Roos's slyly subversive ensemble piece is a drama disguised as a wisp of a comedy.
07/15/05
Top CriticThere's something compelling about Happy Endings and something unexpectedly sweet.
07/15/05
Roos' stories eventually overlap in a tangle of pat fairy-tale endings, after which he treats his characters to the sort of wrap party given to the casts of a beloved TV series that has just finished its last episode.
07/15/05
It's hard to dislike Don Roos' Magnolia-inspired triptych of interconnected comic tales about lies, sex and video.
07/15/05
Happy Endings begins with what seems quite an unhappy ending, when Mamie (Lisa Kudrow) is hit by a car.
07/15/05
Happy Endings needed much more than the intricacies of styling gel to explore the heart of its characters.
07/15/05
The Opposite of Sex's writer-director returns with another sharp, smart look at sex, love and life in L.A.
07/14/05
a quieter, less uproarious sort of film than Sex, less intent on smashing conventions of morality and narrative, though likely it will age much better with time
07/14/05
Genuinely clever and very funny, and all the joking around serves to distract from what is actually an uneven, often absurd series of storylines.
07/14/05
The film rambles, but rambling with the mischievous Roos is still a tricky and winning proposition.
07/14/05
Disjointed indie comic drama.
07/14/05
The best asset is first-rate acting; the worst liability is Roos's overuse of cinematic gimmicks.
07/14/05
It's a challenge to keep up with the multiple character studies and story lines, which are braided, tangled and teased. But the performances are exceptional.
07/14/05
Happy Endings maintains a certain level of intrigue, and occasionally bursts into life.
07/14/05
Top CriticSwift, multi-layered story-telling.
07/14/05
Roos has a gift weaving good laughs out of human failings and frailties.
07/14/05
Satisfying dramedy with an artery blocked heart.
07/14/05
It will make at least some of us feel happy to be alive, to be a person who is flawed and intolerable and perfectly fabulous just the same.
07/14/05
Latest News for Happy Endings
November 17, 2005:
Oh It's Already Been Broughten (Part 3)
A fresh press release from Universal informs us that there will soon be a "Bring It On 3" to enjoy, but also reminds us that, hey yeah, there WAS a direct-to-video... More...
March 09, 2005:
The director arranged to have a physical obstacle—a countertop, a couch—between Tom Arnold and his gay son in every scene until they reconcile. 
More...
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