DVD Review: Everybody’s Fine

Posted Feb 26, 2010 by Kevin Walker

Updated Feb 26, 2010 at 12:39 PM

Everybody’s Fine
Stars: Robert De Niro, Drew Barrymore, Kate Beckinsale, Sam Rockwell
Director: Kirk Jones
The plot:  De Niro is an aging widower who travels across the country to see his four children. He discovers they all are harboring secrets, and some blame his strict parenting for their adult problems.
Bottom line: Another movie about adult children blaming Mommy and Daddy for their broken lives (in part, anyway).  The acting is good, but the problem is the film never feels real in the way this sort of story requires;  it’s more a visualized treatment of a talk therapy session than a story that connects emotionally.
Extras: Paul McCartney talks about writing “(I Want To) Come Home,” which closes the movie.
Quote: “Don’t paint walls. Dogs pee on walls.”
99 minutes (PG-13; thematic elements and brief, strong profanity)