Comwayon
A Disappointing Continuation
filippaberry84
I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.
Brendon Jones
It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.
Ariella Broughton
It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.
wes-connors
Toronto teenager Abigail Breslin (as Sandra Anderson) and her year-younger sister Georgie Henley (as Elizabeth "Beth" Anderson) are also best friends. They have a big problem in common, too, alcoholic mother Mira Sorvino (as Linda). Not only does she drink like a fish, Ms. Sorvino has a succession of bad boyfriends. The girls can't keep track of them all. From the evidence we see in this story, it's safe to presume most of the men liked to smack Sorvino around and attempt sex with her daughters. There is also a neglected little brother. Yes, this is a wildly dysfunctional family. Speaking four different languages, including one they created for themselves, Ms. Breslin and Ms. Henley are easily smart enough to generate some good problem-solving strategies...Well, maybe not...This is another "based on a true story" movie which seems to suffer under the influence. It's sometimes difficult to believe the characters would act like this, in real life. There should be enough material on screen to make the story more believable. Director Stan Brooks does best in conveying the closeness of the "Perfect Sisters". There is a strong background-setting opening and the pair are often positioned in sync. Henley certainly wins the acting honors. The most believable of the three leading women, she effectively applies Gothic make-up to hide her pain. Older sister Breslin's adoption of her mother's habits may be more common, but's it's less convincing. Sorvino's mother portrayal is too poorly defined and the actress' attempted characterization is wasted...Of the supporting men, Jeff C. Ballard (as Justin) is the stand-out, due to his screen time and distracting eye make-up. While Henley's vampire-look helped us understand her character, Mr. Ballard's mascara runs the imagination rampant. Abusive lawyer James Russo (as Steve Bowman) is a standard heel. Instead of wildly shaking the camera, Mr. Brooks and photographer Stephanie Weber-Biron keep it smooth. During rough spots, like the boozy card game and a bathtub scene, they skillfully move around the characters. While the minor strengths are appreciated, the story responds by not adequately involving the viewer.**** Perfect Sisters (4/8/2014) Stan Brooks ~ Abigail Breslin, Georgie Henley, Mira Sorvino, Jeff C. Ballard
hilbertjl
The true-life premise of Perfect Sisters is certainly intriguing, and the young leads performed admirably, but altogether it felt to me like this movie was a bit melodramatic and episodic in nature; I probably would have really been affected by it had I seen it at age 14, but as an adult I found myself actually rolling my eyes at some of the developments.It's likely been compared to the far superior 'Heav0nly Creatures' many times, so I won't dwell - I'll just say that the subtleties of that film contrast with the tunnel-vision juvenile point of view that was apparently written into the script of Perfect Sisters. Everything seemed over simplified; characters (except for the two protagonists) were given the one-dimensional treatment, and there was very little in the way of suspense or development. It doesn't help that Mira Sorvino's talent is sorely wasted on a character so devoid of complexity as to be a walking stereotype. While I sense that the director and writer were trying to convey the story through the eyes of the two sisters, it seems the audience is denied the full truth about their mother. One thing that was fun to see was the witticisms of the sisters and how their fantasy life was portrayed on screen; I just wish their had been more of that and a lot less whining and breast-beating.Having listed all those negatives, I'll conclude that it's still a movie worth viewing for the simple fact that it did actually happen - and for its demonstration of the stupidity that causes violent criminals to get themselves caught sometimes.
raynaking0
I had such high hopes for this movie. I love Abigail Breslin so I figured this movie would be good. It was definitely NOT good but it wasn't necessarily the worst movie ever. The acting wasn't very good at all. So overly dramatic. Im not sure if it was the actress though since she is actually very talented. Maybe a bad director? The other actress was just plain bad. I don't even remember her name. I believe she was the little girl from Narnia but I'm not sure. I really liked the plot I just couldn't get pass the horrible acting. I'm giving this movie 4 stars because even though the acting was awful (except for the actress who played the mother she was excellent!) I really liked the storyline. The movie didn't feel dragged out or rushed. It was put together nicely. It's worth at least one watch. Don't think I'll ever watch it again.
sltfilho
I was looking for some gripping, even chilling story about dysfunctional teenagers. Like what we saw in "Thirteen", which was a great movie, but now with a - true - crime story. Nah.The director has been a producer for over 30 years and got some famous people to act in it. The actresses (the three of them) are really good. However, the direction takes a completely wrong turn, trying to make it a "dark teen fantasy-comedy-thriller-drama" salad. For instance, you start to wonder how two young girl plan the murders and... you have four teenagers enacting fantasies about murder. That's so not the thing this film should portray.All the intentions to connect with teenagers were completely flawed. Bad soundtrack, TERRIBLE montage effects, ludicrous mixture of genres, awful cinematography work. It's like parents using slang. All the attempts to highlight the medium -- divided screen, special lights, accelerated camera -- are pathetic and would not even work in an MTV show in 1997. It's not a film for teenagers -- and if it was supposed to be, it didn't work either.There are scenes that people's faces are covered by SOMEONE'S HEAD -- and not intentionally! Unbelievable. If you are a director making a debut, be humble and let a competent cinematographer AND editor do their jobs. How beautiful this film would On the top of that, a voice-over starts giving ANOTHER angle on the film -- those films about bitchy teenagers obsessed with fame, kind of like To Die For from Gus Van Sant -- only to forget about it minutes later and never coming back to that.Anyways. I was interested in the story, and through all the amateur work I could grasp something from it. The two girls are great actresses, and Mira Sorvino portrays precisely the thin line between a likable weak person and a wreck that screws up their children.Somewhere I heard this: some people don't have to work their way into the center of the stage. They can pull strings and buy themselves into it. Question is: are they ready for it?