Pieces Of April
The transition from teen TV actress to movie star is fraught with difficulties. Katie Holmes, longtime lead actress for the WB's "Dawson's Creek," is the latest to attempt the move. Her early efforts showed a knack for picking quality material (Wonder Boys, Go), although most of these films featured her in supporting roles.
With the ultra-low-budget Pieces of April, that's about to change. Holmes plays April, a problem child who rarely sees her parents (played by Patricia Clarkson and Oliver Platt) or younger siblings. Now, she's trying to clean up her act, dumping her drug-dealing boyfriend for the more upstanding Bobby (Derek Luke) and inviting her family to her NYC apartment for Thanksgiving dinner.
Despite April's recent efforts to clean her act up, her family remains skeptical and less than eager to make the trek to April's abode. But, perhaps buoyed by the terminal illness of one family member, they reluctantly make the trip. The film primarily alternates back and forth between the family's rather eventful road trip and April's equally eventful attempt to cook Thanksgiving dinner. April's trials and travails include a frantic search for a working oven to cook the turkey in, a search that eventually leading her to an eccentric neighbor's home (played by "Will & Grace" star Sean Hayes).
Pieces of April veers wildly between offbeat humor and poignant drama. It's an uneasy mix, largely because some of the bizarre scenarios seem forced. Worse yet, some of the comedic scenes are downright unfunny. Still, writer Peter Hedges (What's Eating Gilbert Grape, About A Boy), making his directorial debut, compensates with some genuinely funny and touching moments. The film's gritty low-budget look also works to its advantage, adding a feeling of realism to the proceedings.
The cast, working for virtually no pay, is solid all around. It's a kick to see Holmes in a gritty low-budget indie shot on video. She accepts the challenge and thrives, giving her best film performance to date. Clarkson, who won a special jury prize at Sundance for her role, shines as April's mother, alternating between bitter rage and love for her family. Luke, who burst onto the scene in Denzel Washington's Antwone Fisher, continues to show that he's an acting natural. Finally, how can you not like a film that finds an amusing part for Sisqo (of "Thong Song" fame)?
Pieces of April was truly a lavor of love for Hedges. Shot for only $150,000 and partly inspired by his mother's battle with cancer, it was a hit at Sundance. An often funny, poignant story about family dysfunction, it's packed with a sense of intimacy missing from most of the hollow big-budget behemoths crowding the theaters. And we should all give thanks for that.
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Liquor is absent from this Thanksgiving feast, but for those deviants in the audience there is a memorable pot-smoking scene.
Holmes and Luke have a winning chemistry, even if romance isn't the film's primary focus.
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