REVIEW: GRACE IS GONE

Yes, another John Cusack picture. The last one was extremely disappointing (at least to me) so I was hoping this time around would be much better.

The film is called Grace Is Gone and it's the story of a military family that has to make the ultimate sacrifice.

It is a 2007 drama tarring John Cusack as a father who does not want to tell his two daughters that their mother has died while serving in Iraq. On January 29, 2007, it won the Audience Award for Drama at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival.

The music in the film also received two Golden Globe nominations by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association for the 65th Golden Globe Awards.

I was happy to reconnect with my buddy Cusack since he gave a stirring performance in this picture. Being a dad, I could relate to his struggles to want to try and protect and preserve their innocence (and happiness) for as long as possible.

Here is the trailer:


HUBBY'S REVIEW

A refreshing departure from the current crop of Iraq war dramas, Grace Is Gone is a heartfelt, finely acted portrayal of grief and healing.

Cusack really steps into the character of the uptight, grief-stricken Stanley and the little girls who play his daughters are amazing. Specifically, it's the story of a man and the special relationship he cements with his daughters as he takes them on a spur-of-the-moment road-trip delaying the inevitable moment when he must break the news to them that their mother has died in the line of duty in Iraq.

I remember my mother-in-law telling us before we watched it how it was very slow, drawn out, and boring at times. She didn't realize it, but that was a very astute observation on her part!

Where this film succeeds is by creating that exact sense and feeling of emotion so that the audience in a sense gets to experience what Stanley is experiencing in his moment-to-moment struggle with the truth.

I'm giving it 3.75 Ben & Jerry's ice creams out of 5. A moving story, and one we need more of these days so that we will always remember the sacrifices made by others for our sake.