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An alternate title could be "The Has-Been Writer Relives Glory Days Like the Jock Who Scored the Winning Touchdown and The… oh, I don't know. A pending divorce is the premise of the flick. Two noted writers, one forever referring to his days when he was published, the other a more recent success. There's some mention of this being the catalyst for the separation, but also years of unfaithfulness. Their two boys are the innocent victims of the circumstance.
Jeff Daniels bitter character, Bernhard, maddened me with passive opinions about literary greats, people in general and inappropriate advice about relationships to his teenage son Not to mention his need for encouraging his youngest to be anything but a "philistine".
Both parents selfishly fail to see how the separation is affecting both of the children, and instead are wrapped in their own feelings and using their children as sound boards.
Happily, and sadly, the older of the boys realizes that he needn't side with either parent and maybe he's not as much of an adult as he thought he was. Teenagers are kids too, as much as they don't want to admit it. Sometimes they want to cover their eyes and have someone gently explain what's happening so things aren't so scary anymore.
A well-written story that's probably, and sadly, more usual than we all know.
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