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The Boys Are Back

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The Boys Are Back (2009)

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Reviews Counted:81

Fresh:58

Rotten:23

Average Rating:6.4/10

Consensus: Great performances by Clive Owen and The Boys save this melodrama from entering into the sappy territory it might have in less competent hands.

Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for some sexual language and thematic elements.

Genre: Comedies

Theatrical Release:Sep 25, 2009 Limited

Box Office: $783,013

Synopsis: Inspired by a true story, THE BOYS ARE BACK is a deeply moving, wryly confessional tale of fatherhood, that intimately evokes both the fragility and wonders of family life. It follows a witty,... Inspired by a true story, THE BOYS ARE BACK is a deeply moving, wryly confessional tale of fatherhood, that intimately evokes both the fragility and wonders of family life. It follows a witty, wisecracking, action-oriented sportswriter (Academy Award® nominee and Golden Globe® winner CLIVE OWEN) who, in the wake of his wife’s tragic death, finds himself in a sudden, stultifying state of single parenthood. With turbulent emotions swirling just below the surface, Joe Warr throws himself into the only child-rearing philosophy he thinks has a shot at bringing joy back into their lives: “just say yes.”

Raising two boys – a curious six year-old (NICHOLAS MCANULTY) and a rebel teen (GEORGE MACKAY) from a previous marriage -- in a household devoid of feminine influence, and with an unabashed lack of rules, life becomes exuberant, instinctual, reckless . . . and on the constant verge of disaster.

United by unspoken love, conflicted by fierce feelings and in search of a road forward, the three multi-generational boys of the Warr household, father and sons alike, must each find their own way, however tenuous, to grow up.

Their story is not just about the transforming power of a family crisis -- but the unavoidable grace of everyday life and love that gets them through.

Academy Award® nominee Scott Hicks (“Shine”) directs from a screenplay by Allan Cubitt based on the acclaimed 2001 memoir by Simon Carr, The Boys Are Back, an unflinchingly funny and honest recounting of his journey from grieving husband to full-contact fatherhood in the aftermath of profound loss. Shot on location in the stunning countryside of South Australia, the film is produced by Greg Brenman (“Billy Elliot”) and Tim White (“Ned Kelly”).

The executive producers are Peter Bennett-Jones and Clive Owen. --© Miramax [More]

Starring: Clive Owen, Laura Fraser, Nicholas Macanulty, Julia Blake

Starring: Clive Owen, Laura Fraser, Nicholas Macanulty, Julia Blake, George MacKay, Emma Booth

Director: Scott Hicks

Director: Scott Hicks
Screenwriter: Allan Cubitt
Producer: Greg Brenman, Tim White, Bella Wright
Composer: Hal Lindes
Studio: Miramax Films

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Release:

Jan 26, 2010

[DVD Details]
 
 

DVD Features:

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Reviews for The Boys Are Back

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The Boys are Back deftly combines humour and heart in a well crafted tale of boys of all ages growing up, and if it helps, just think of it as a good film they happened to make in Australia.

Full Review Source: smh.com.au | comment Comment
11/15/09
Giles Hardie
Giles Hardie
smh.com.au

As the film grapples with the tension between the ideals of parenthood and the realities, the script fumbles some key moments.

Full Review Source: MovieTime, ABC Radio National | comment Comment
11/12/09
Ruth Hessey
Ruth Hessey
MovieTime, ABC Radio National

This beautifully etched, deeply moving drama about single fatherhood [is] the best film Adelaide director Scott Hicks has made since Shine -- and the peak of Clive Owen's acting career

Full Review Source: The Age (Australia) | comment Comment
11/12/09
Jim Schembri
Jim Schembri
The Age (Australia)

Director, Scott Hicks has created a really lovely film. It’s fortunate that the star power of Clive Owen gives the film a core dynamism.

Full Review Source: At the Movies (Australia) | comment Comment
11/11/09
Margaret Pomeranz
Margaret Pomeranz
At the Movies (Australia)

Expert tearjerker with a phenomenal performance from Owen, which will be particularly affecting for parents.

Full Review Source: FILMINK (Australia) | comment Comment
11/11/09
Dov Kornits
Dov Kornits
FILMINK (Australia)

The film plods along unremarkably -- even Joe’s unorthodox rearing techniques lose their surprise factor after a while -- but does remain true to itself right to the bitter(sweet) end.

Full Review Source: Herald Sun (Australia) | comment Comment
11/11/09
Leigh Paatsch
Leigh Paatsch
Herald Sun (Australia)

There's a lot to like about the film. Hicks makes evocative use of the Fleurieu Peninsula's hills and coastline to impart some magic to Joe's attempts to turn life with his sons in to a Boys' Own adventure.

Full Review Source: Sydney Morning Herald | comment Comment
11/09/09
Sandra Hall
Sandra Hall
Sydney Morning Herald

Scott Hicks’s return to the big-screen -- and Australia, courtesy of the film’s South Australian setting -- is a wonderfully moving meditation on life, death and familial bonds that triumphs in its understated approach.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine Australasia | comment Comment
11/08/09
Rod Yates
Rod Yates
Empire Magazine Australasia

It's the two boys, young George Mackay and younger Nicholas McAnulty who walk away with the acting honours in astonishingly mature and controlled performances

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
11/05/09
Andrew L. Urban
Andrew L. Urban
Urban Cinefile

It's about emotional chaos and who better to embody it than Clive Owen as the soulful widower trying to master being an everyday father. It feels like a work of love for Hicks, who injects serenity within the chaos as he conducts a mantle of melancholy

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
11/05/09
Louise Keller
Louise Keller
Urban Cinefile

Joe says in a voice-over that "life is a journey to be traveled no matter how bad the road." And The Boys Are Back is a highly satisfying ride.

Full Review Source: Christianity Today | comment Comment
10/31/09
Camerin Courtney
Camerin Courtney
Christianity Today

An affecting blend of warm comedy and high pathos, The Boys Are Back brings an unusual all-male perspective to its otherwise familiar themes of domesticity, death and dysfunction.

Full Review Source: Eye for Film | comment Comment
10/30/09
Anton Bitel
Anton Bitel
Eye for Film

Even a corrosive influence like yours truly finds something a bit hinky about the motto 'Just Say Yes.' At least when applied to raising children.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Weekly | comment Comment
10/27/09
Sean Burns
Sean Burns
Philadelphia Weekly

The Boys are bound to seem a rather boring bunch, which makes it hard for Scott Hicks' downbeat heart-tugger to resonate in any meaningful way.

Full Review Source: Times-Picayune | comment Comment
10/23/09
Mike Scott
Mike Scott
Times-Picayune

. . . presents some inevitable clichés from the grief-dealing playbook, but also tosses in the occasional change of pace zinger to keep the film from drowning in sorrow.

Full Review Source: Atlantic City Weekly | comment Comment
10/22/09
Lori Hoffman
Lori Hoffman
Atlantic City Weekly

Parental Content Review

Full Review Source: Screen It! | comment Comment
10/15/09
Jim Judy
Jim Judy
Screen It!

When the film works, it works really well. It certainly doesn't hurt that it features Owen, an actor who's capable of making almost anything watchable.

Full Review Source: Deseret News, Salt Lake City | comment Comment
10/15/09
Jeff Vice
Jeff Vice
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

Might just put you off ever having children, if you don't already.

Full Review Source: Las Vegas Weekly | comment Comment
10/15/09
Josh Bell
Josh Bell
Las Vegas Weekly

It has the same understanding of male emotions as a Nick Hornby bestseller and could be that rare warmhearted weepie with an appeal that spans the genders and generations.

Full Review Source: Screen International | comment Comment
10/14/09
Allan Hunter
Allan Hunter
Screen International

If The Boys Are Back takes some emotional shortcuts, it still manages to convey some of the more mystifying aspects of parenthood.

Full Review Source: Arizona Republic | comment Comment
10/14/09
Bill Goodykoontz
Bill Goodykoontz
Arizona Republic
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
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Latest News for The Boys Are Back

November 09, 2009: Scott Hicks Talks The Boys Are Back
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