Last night, we saw the film “The Kids Are All Right,” and I cannot stop thinking about it (Warning: the review in the hyperlink is a major "spoiler."). In a nutshell, it is about a lesbian couple (played by Julianne Moore and Annette Bening) with two teenage children, both of whom were conceived with the help of the same anonymous sperm donor played by Mark Ruffalo. Near the movie’s outset, the older child, who has just turned 18, decides to contact said donor. Needless to say, hilarity does not ensue, but conflict and strain soon emerge.
Throughout the course of the film, it becomes abundantly clear that the two teenage kids are, indeed, all right, but their moms’ marriage and their “dad” could not be farther from all right. While the moms’ love and devotion for their kids is palpable, what is less clear is how their marriage has evolved into what it has become- quotidian. The “dad” seems quite charming and beguiling at first, but his shortcomings soon emerge, too.
I will not give too much away, but I was left wondering many questions: How do two people most effectively evolve and co-exist as a couple? Is this something that is even possible? Do we come to appreciate what we have because we fear/know that the alternatives are plainly so much less palatable/scary? I do not have any of these answers, but this film made me wonder.
In sum, “The Kids Are All Right” was a compelling picture, although it was far from perfect. Just like all of us, I suppose...
