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Movies / Upcoming / The Upside of Anger
The Upside of Anger

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The Upside of Anger (2005)

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Reviews Counted:167

Fresh:122

Rotten:45

Average Rating:6.7/10

Consensus: A comedy/ drama for grown-ups, with fine performances by Joan Allen and Kevin Costner.

Runtime: 2 hrs 1 min

Genre: Dramas

US Box Office: $18,742,061

Synopsis: Starring Joan Allen, THE UPSIDE OF ANGER spans three years of a woman's life following her husband's sudden disappearance. Terry Wolfmeyer (Allen), an affluent suburban Detroit wife and mother,... Starring Joan Allen, THE UPSIDE OF ANGER spans three years of a woman's life following her husband's sudden disappearance. Terry Wolfmeyer (Allen), an affluent suburban Detroit wife and mother, goes from a paragon of sweetness to a volcano of rage in the wake of her husband's desertion; she thinks he has jetted off to Sweden with his Swedish secretary. Barely holding it together for her four daughters (distinctively played by Alicia Witt, Keri Russell, Erika Christensen, and Evan Rachel Wood), Terry fitfully adjusts while befriending Denny Davies (Costner), a retired baseball player and radio personality up the street who shares her love of the all-day cocktail hour. Allen is a delightful force, displaying serious comedic talent and effortlessly stealing each scene. She glows with an unaffected sexiness, while Costner shines as the seemingly all-wrong man who turns out to be completely right. Writer-director Mike Binder casts a keenly perceptive eye on male-female relationships, a topic he also explored in his critically-acclaimed HBO series THE MIND OF THE MARRIED MAN. Binder also appears in a role as Denny's producer Shep, a shallow womanizer with surprisingly resonant reasons for being shallow. As the three years pass, Terry and her daughters are confronted with varying individual situations, choices, and compromises, with moments that ring true in ways both moving and strikingly funny. THE UPSIDE OF ANGER is an ideal combination of drama and humor. [More]

Starring: Joan Allen, Kevin Costner, Erika Christensen, Alicia Witt

Starring: Joan Allen, Kevin Costner, Erika Christensen, Alicia Witt, Evan Rachel Wood, Keri Russell, Mike Binder

Director: Mike Binder

Director: Mike Binder
Producer: Alex Gartner, Jack Binder, Sammy Lee
Composer: Alexandre Desplat
Studio: New Line Cinema

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Reviews for The Upside of Anger

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41 - 60 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

Allen makes the most of her role -- the tiny scene where she walks in on two certain people in bed with one another is a wondrously sharp statement of total acting commitment.

Full Review Source: Window to the Movies | comment Comment
04/25/05
Jeffrey Chen
Jeffrey Chen
Window to the Movies

[L]ike Leaving Las Vegas, The Upside of Anger provides a galvanizing turn for its star--a daring alloy of pungent misery and jaw-dropping antics.

Full Review Source: Blogcritics.org | comment Comment
04/25/05
Alan Dale
Alan Dale
Blogcritics.org

Costner delivers a subtle, engaging performance that's completely different from anything he's done before and might just mark the beginning of a new phase in his career.

Full Review Source: Reel Film Reviews | comment Comment
04/23/05
David Nusair
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews

Even though Binder’s characters are all gems, the filmmaker needs to further hone his storytelling craft.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
04/23/05
Marjorie Baumgarten
Marjorie Baumgarten
Austin Chronicle

a sharp, funny comedy-drama that provides a spectacular showcase, perhaps even a signature role, for Allen.

Full Review Source: Kalamazoo Gazette | comment Comment
04/22/05
James Sanford
James Sanford
Kalamazoo Gazette

Allen's desperate housewife makes this trip into suburbia worthwhile.

Full Review Source: Atlantic City Weekly | comment Comment
04/20/05
Lori Hoffman
Lori Hoffman
Atlantic City Weekly

While most of the movie has a welcome feel to it, the ending carries as much absurdity as anything in Diary of a Mad Black Woman.

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment Comment
04/17/05
Collin Souter
Collin Souter
eFilmCritic.com

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Killer Movie Reviews | comment Comment
04/17/05
Andrea Chase
Andrea Chase
Killer Movie Reviews

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: NYC Film Critic | comment Comment
04/17/05
Ethan Alter
Ethan Alter
NYC Film Critic

Allen and Costner have the kind of genuine, unquestionable chemistry that can't be faked

Full Review Source: Q Network Film Desk | comment Comment
04/15/05
James Kendrick
James Kendrick
Q Network Film Desk

Any disappointment I felt about elements of this movie was overshadowed by the fine performances of Kevin Costner and Joan Allen, especially the latter.

Full Review Source: Goatdog's Movies | comment Comment
04/15/05
Michael W. Phillips, Jr.
Michael W. Phillips, Jr.
Goatdog's Movies

Do yourself a favor and catch this fine film on the big screen.

Full Review Source: Entertainment Spectrum | comment Comment
04/14/05
Vince Koehler
Vince Koehler
Entertainment Spectrum

There's no downside to the crackling Costner/Allen pairing, but Binder spreads himself thin. He puts in play too many subplots about Allen's budding daughters.

Full Review Source: Boulder Weekly | comment Comment
04/13/05
Thomas Delapa
Thomas Delapa
Boulder Weekly

Achieves a harmonious balance between truth and consequence.

Full Review Source: Oregon Herald | comment Comment
04/12/05
Mark Sells
Mark Sells
Oregon Herald

If you're in the mood for a well told tale of dysfunction and discovery, seeing this simply doesn't have a downside.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
04/12/05
Rick Kisonak
Rick Kisonak
Film Threat

The downside is the slow pace of the movie.

Full Review Source: jackiekcooper.com | comment Comment
04/11/05
Jackie K. Cooper
Jackie K. Cooper
jackiekcooper.com

The Upside of Anger isn’t as good as any of its actors.

Full Review Source: Reno Gazette-Journal | comment Comment
04/08/05
Forrest Hartman
Forrest Hartman
Reno Gazette-Journal

A drama mined with comic moments, the movie's got an Oscar-worthy performance from three-time Oscar nominee Joan Allen.

Full Review Source: Advocate (Baton Rouge, LA) | comment Comment
04/08/05
John Wirt
John Wirt
Advocate (Baton Rouge, LA)

Too much of The Upside of Anger is informed by unquestioned social mores.

Full Review Source: Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia) | comment Comment
04/06/05
Mark Palermo
Mark Palermo
Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

Not a bad movie -- and worth seeing for Costner's and Allen's performances -- but I'm inclined to think that ultimately its intentions are less than honest.

Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | comment Comment
04/06/05
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
 
 
41 - 60 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 >> >|
all

Latest News for The Upside of Anger

June 08, 2006: Sandler to Star in 9/11 Drama
Big-screen comedian Adam Sandler is going to get a little more serious for his next role. He'll be starring in Mike Binder's 9/11 drama "Empty City," along with Don... More...

February 21, 2006: Actress Trio Joins Sandler's "Reign"
Actresses Liv Tyler, Saffron Burrows, and Jada Pinkett-Smith will be joining Adam Sandler and Don Cheadle in "Reign O'er Me," a post-9/11 drama from "Upside of... More...

January 11, 2006: Chicago Critics Pick Their 2005 Winners (and Iowa!)
The Chicago Film Critics Group announced their nominees just before New Years' Eve, and they reconvened this week to vote on their year-end favorites. Also, the Iowa Film... More...

January 10, 2006: Online Film Critics Offer Their Annual Nominations
The OFCS, which is hosted right here at Rotten Tomatoes and (full disclosure) includes yours truly as a member, announced their year-end nominations yesterday ... and we hope... More...

See All

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