Even though this film is relatively unknown (at least to me), I am surprised that I have not heard more about it. Men, Women & Children is a solid, relationship-driven drama about the dangers and precautions of technology in the modern age, although it comes off as very forgettable at times. While this film might seem a bit dated and exaggerated, I loved how these characters interacted and the interweaving stories that came from them. The most prominent aspect of this film is its massive cast of both established stars and younger, up-and-coming stars that, at this point in 2019, is incredible to see how far these artists have come. With some great direction from Jason Reitman and a fantastic use of graphics and music, this film is absolutely worth checking out.
Men, Women & Children follows the lives of a multitude of families and people living in a small town, including Don (Adam Sandler) and his wife Helen (Rosemarie DeWitt), Patricia (Jennifer Garner), Donna (Judy Greer) and her daughter Hannah (Olivia Crocicchia), an unlikely relationship between Tim (Ansel Elgort) and Brandy (Kaitlyn Dever), and many, many others. Exploring how 21st-century technology affects our everyday relationships, from romantic ones to how we often view ourselves, this film is a great example of showing how harmful it can be to people of different ages, genders, and home environments. What I loved most about this film is how the script was able to tell so many different stories at once. Written by Jason Reitman and Erin Cressida Wilson, this movie takes a whole slew of characters and throws them all into the modern world having to deal with the hazards of constant communication. From Don and Helen's crumbling marriage due to their sexual problems to Donna and Hannah's strange, almost exploitative, mother-daughter relationship, every different subplot throughout this film was so interesting. Each one could have made a case for its own main plot, but the way that Reitman weaves them all together was done decently well. My main issue with this script is the fact that there are so many characters. It is indeed engaging to see all of these stories spread out across this wide cast of people, but there were so many to the point of me not entirely caring about certain ones. The characters that I truly cared the most about were the disgraced football player Tim and Brandy, the girl with whom he starts a very unlikely relationship. Brandy's extremely overbearing mother Patricia was the main cause of the troubles between these two and even though her character was written to be way too exaggerated, I loved the development of Tim and Brandy's story together, as heartbreaking as parts of it may be.
I honestly think what would have made this film much stronger is to shift the focus of the effects of technology on solely children or adults. Even though there are many other films that have tackled this subject a bit more clearly, I would have been much more engaged if the film had just told the adults' stories or just told the children's stories. The combination of the two was an understandable choice, but it became messy at times. I actually think that these stories would work far better as a Netflix mini-series or an episodic, anthology film. One of the directorial choices that I also could not get behind was the framing narrative of the satellite floating throughout space accompanied by narration from Emma Thompson. I understood the logic of having that carry the film due to the subject matter, but I just do not think that the philosophical undertones and existential themes necessarily fit the tone of these characters and their stories. The aspects that I loved the most, however, were this film's soundtrack, graphics, and the performances. The subtle use of music throughout this movie to set the tone for each scene was so clever and while this movie's sound design was quiet, it helped to establish a tense and modern environment for these characters. Every performance in this movie was fantastic as well, from Adam Sandler (he does much better in films not written by himself) to Ansel Elgort and everyone in between. It is obvious that these actresses and actors care about their respective characters and I have nothing but praise for their dedication. And finally, the use of the phone and laptop screen graphics throughout this movie was fantastic. While it is not the most creative or original idea, especially now, it was a perfect and well-utilized choice for this film's subject matter.
Men, Women & Children is an amazing drama with an all-star cast that, while it has good intentions in its message of technology, is often too generic for the audience to get attached to its characters. I still love this story, however, and the way that it was told. Despite many of these characters being a bit flat and the script relying too much on certain stories, I would still recommend this film and its ability to showcase the casts' diverse acting abilities.
My Rating: ★★★★
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