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Movies / On DVD / 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

Theatrical Release:Mar 11, 2005 Limited

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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Release:

Jul 26, 2005

[DVD Details]
 
 
  • A touching yet humorous film about a woman who finds her and her daughters' lives changed by a former baseball star who steps into her life as her drinking buddy.
  • Source: Warner Home Video
  •  
     
     
     

    Reviews for The Upside of Anger

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    81 - 100 (sorted by date)
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    What The Upside of Anger gets right -- especially the work by Allen and Costner -- is more than enough reason to spend some time in the unhappy Wolfmeyer household.

    Full Review Source: Kansas City Star | comment Comment
    04/01/05
    Robert W. Butler
    Robert W. Butler
    Kansas City Star

    Terry is, in short, a great role for any actress. And Allen, who isn't just any actress, rips into it with the relish of a woman looking to reinvent her career.

    Full Review Source: Oregonian | comment Comment
    04/01/05
    M.E. Russell
    M.E. Russell
    Oregonian

    Binder's film is an intriguing, funny and sad look at a family in crisis.

    Full Review Source: Rochester Democrat and Chronicle | comment Comment
    04/01/05
    Jack Garner
    Jack Garner
    Rochester Democrat and Chronicle

    I’d suggest a better title would be The Upside of Alcoholism,” but I really can’t think of any upside to this film.

    Full Review Source: 7M Pictures | comment Comment
    04/01/05
    Kevin Carr
    Kevin Carr
    7M Pictures

    Allen breathes fire into the role, turning what could have been a shrill character into a tower of raging rediscovery.

    Full Review Source: Salt Lake Tribune | comment Comment
    04/01/05
    Sean Means
    Sean Means
    Salt Lake Tribune

    Hell hath no fury like Joan Allen scorned. We always knew she could act, but we never knew she could play a pissed off mother of four like a rabid pit bull with rouge.

    Full Review Source: Richmond.com | comment Comment
    04/01/05
    Mike Ward
    Mike Ward
    Richmond.com

    Allen's great performance eventually is neutered in obeisance to the false notion that fictional characters must go through a redemptive arc for their stories to be of value.

    Full Review Source: Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN) | comment Comment
    04/01/05
    John Beifuss
    John Beifuss
    Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)

    Features many good scenes that feel authentic, but is interspersed with awkward 'movie moments' that don't ring true.

    Full Review Source: Fantastica Daily | comment Comment
    04/01/05
    Chuck O'Leary
    Chuck O'Leary
    Fantastica Daily

    It is a true joy to see a wonderful actress get such a juicy role to sink her teeth into. If only it happened more often.

    Full Review Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel | comment Comment
    03/31/05
    Paul Doro
    Paul Doro
    Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

    Can only be described as American Beauty Lite (and Carb Free!).

    Full Review Source: Planet Sick-Boy | comment Comment
    03/31/05
    Jon Popick
    Jon Popick
    Planet Sick-Boy

    A sharply funny, piercing examination of righteous indignation.

    Full Review Source: EricDSnider.com | comment Comment
    03/30/05
    Eric D. Snider
    Eric D. Snider
    EricDSnider.com

    The story develops with a mind of its own, free from convention and formula, and packs a heck of a twist at the end that does what a twist should do.

    Full Review Source: Arizona Daily Star | comment Comment
    03/30/05
    Phil Villarreal
    Phil Villarreal
    Arizona Daily Star

    If only Binder had trusted The Upside of Anger as a showcase for two performances by aging actors apparently comfortable about getting older.

    Full Review Source: Film Freak Central | comment Comment
    03/29/05
    Walter Chaw
    Walter Chaw
    Film Freak Central

    A funny comedy for adults.

    Full Review Source: FilmJerk.com | comment Comment
    03/27/05
    Edward Havens
    Edward Havens
    FilmJerk.com

    Standard-issue.

    Full Review Source: Toronto Star | comment Comment
    03/25/05
    Geoff Pevere
    Geoff Pevere
    Toronto Star
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    ...hits that specific note of comic melancholy that best captures real life.

    Full Review Source: Sun Publications (Chicago, IL) | comment Comment
    03/25/05
    Josh Larsen
    Josh Larsen
    Sun Publications (Chicago, IL)

    Writer/director Mike Binder scripts sarcastic humor and dialogue that just avoids being glib, thanks in part to a pair of rich performances.

    Full Review Source: Seattle Post-Intelligencer | comment Comment
    03/23/05
    Sean Axmaker
    Sean Axmaker
    Seattle Post-Intelligencer

    A better than average dip into the family well.

    Full Review Source: Cinema Signals | comment Comment
    03/23/05
    Jules Brenner
    Jules Brenner
    Cinema Signals

    ...generates enough moments to be recommended to anyone looking for a engaging, adult drama with a little alcohol mixed in for fun.

    Full Review Source: JoBlo's Movie Emporium | comment Comment
    03/22/05
    JoBlo
    JoBlo
    JoBlo's Movie Emporium

    Few movies these days aim at adults, or even above the waist, so this film is to be treasured.

    Full Review Source: Laramie Movie Scope | comment Comment
    03/22/05
    Robert Roten
    Robert Roten
    Laramie Movie Scope
     
     
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    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...

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