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The Family Stone

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The Family Stone (2005)

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Reviews Counted:147

Fresh:77

Rotten:70

Average Rating:5.9/10

Consensus: This family holiday dramedy features fine performances but awkward shifts of tone.

Rated: PG [See Full Rating] for some sexual content including dialogue, and drug references.

Runtime: 1 hr 46 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:16-12-2005

Synopsis: Destined to be a Christmas classic, Thomas Bezucha's dazzling dramedy, THE FAMILY STONE, manages to be both warmhearted and sentimental while possessing a razor-sharp hilarious mean streak. The... Destined to be a Christmas classic, Thomas Bezucha's dazzling dramedy, THE FAMILY STONE, manages to be both warmhearted and sentimental while possessing a razor-sharp hilarious mean streak. The fairly conventional story centers on Sarah Jessica Parker's uptight career woman, Meredith, and her run-in with the eponymous Stone family. With her permanently pursed lips and severe bun, SJP looks and acts the anti-Carrie Bradshaw here as, armed with cell phone and business-suit collection, she gears up to meet her fiance's oddball family, a tight-knit, colorful clan who border on bohemian. Matriarch Sybil (Diane Keaton) and patriarch Kelly (Craig T. Nelson) are a loving couple whose diverse children are affectionate and respectful. When Meredith's humorless aura infects the homestead, it is mom Sybil and sister Amy (Rachel McAdams), who sense a romantic mismatch and attack her venomously, sparking a tete-a-tete-a-tete between three feisty females. While this Battle Royal is waged, dramatic subplots brew in the background, one involving the deaf and gay brother Thad's desire to adopt a child, and the other a rather devastating secret on the verge of exposure. It is in the emergence of Meredith's refreshingly calm and breezy younger sister, Julie (Claire Danes), entering the film with a dramatic fall from a bus exit, that brings all conflict to a head. [More]

Starring: Claire Danes, Diane Keaton, Rachel McAdams, Sarah Jessica Parker

Starring: Claire Danes, Diane Keaton, Rachel McAdams, Sarah Jessica Parker, Dermot Mulroney, Luke Wilson, Tyrone Giordano, Brian White, Elizabeth Reazer, Savannah Stehlin, Paul Schneider

Director: Thomas Bezucha

Director: Thomas Bezucha
Producer: Michael London
Studio: 20th Century Fox

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Reviews for The Family Stone

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41 - 60 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 >> >|
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Let's just call it Meet the Stepmom for the Holidays and be done with it.

Full Review Source: Planet Sick-Boy | comment Comment
12/22/05
Jon Popick
Jon Popick
Planet Sick-Boy

One of those films that succeeds not because it surprises you, but because it does what you want it to do -- and it does so pretty well.

Full Review Source: Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC) | comment Comment
12/21/05
Ken Hanke
Ken Hanke
Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

So determined to pair everyone up, whether logically or not, you'd think Noah's Ark was coming to town

Full Review Source: jackiekcooper.com | comment Comment
12/21/05
Jackie K. Cooper
Jackie K. Cooper
jackiekcooper.com

Like the character of Meredith, the film's bravado cannot mask a messy soul but should be given respect for showing up and sticking it out.

Full Review Source: Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies | comment Comment
12/21/05
Nell Minow
Nell Minow
Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies

Nothing like a little poignancy to mask a distasteful Christmas brew. But Rachel McAdams is hot.

Full Review Source: Cinema Signals | comment Comment
12/19/05
Jules Brenner
Jules Brenner
Cinema Signals

As one of the more likable holiday films to come around in a long time, the comedy The Family Stone will also surprise you with its depth and emotional appeal.

Full Review Source: Hollywood.com | comment Comment
12/19/05
Kit Bowen
Kit Bowen
Hollywood.com

And here, just in time for the holidays, is a television movie all dressed like a feature film.

Full Review Source: Quad City Times (Davenport, IA) | comment Comment
12/19/05
Linda Cook
Linda Cook
Quad City Times (Davenport, IA)

The dark humor is amusing enough to suck you into the film, and the melodramatic conclusion will send you out of the theater with a tear in your eye.

Full Review Source: Sean the Movie Guy | comment Comment
12/19/05
Sean McBride
Sean McBride
Sean the Movie Guy

The movie's stock base: pat revelations and cheap manipulations.

Full Review Source: Now Playing Magazine | comment Comment
12/19/05
Brent Simon
Brent Simon
Now Playing Magazine

Gleefully irreverent and proudly offbeat in its rhythmic mix of pluckiness and pathos, Bezucha's festive family farce is up front and center.

Full Review Source: Movie Eye | comment Comment
12/18/05
Frank Ochieng
Frank Ochieng
Movie Eye

One of the things I like about The Family Stone is that the characters seem real. They may have some quirks, but they're realistic quirks, not those devised by an overly clever screenwriter.

Full Review Source: Aisle Seat | comment Comment
12/18/05
Mike McGranaghan
Mike McGranaghan
Aisle Seat

There are just too many damn characters, with the best ones taking a backseat to the dullish love quadrangle.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
12/18/05
Kimberly Jones
Kimberly Jones
Austin Chronicle

It feels forcibly formulaic and yet sort of daringly original, all at the same time.

Full Review Source: Fresno Bee | comment Comment
12/17/05
Donald Munro
Donald Munro
Fresno Bee

One of those cloying familiar whacky holiday formulaic sitcom drama/comedies that is what it is.

Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
12/17/05
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

A terrific screwball comedy in its own right, like a more erudite Meet the Parents.

Full Review Source: Film Blather | comment Comment
12/17/05
Eugene Novikov
Eugene Novikov
Film Blather

Ultra-contrived, but delivers an important message about tolerance.

Full Review Source: ReelTalk Movie Reviews | comment Comment
12/17/05
Betty Jo Tucker
Betty Jo Tucker
ReelTalk Movie Reviews
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
12/17/05
Boston Phoenix
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch | comment Comment
12/17/05
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The delightful Stone family becomes the villain, and we're left unsure whether to crow in triumph when [Meredith] flees or hope she returns with a bazooka and blows the house up. It's this moral ambivalence that makes this thing so interesting.

Full Review Source: Greenwich Village Gazette | comment Comment
12/17/05
Eric Lurio
Eric Lurio
Greenwich Village Gazette

It's worth two hours for those who appreciate this kind of workmanlike, low-risk drama.

Full Review Source: ReelViews | comment Comment
12/17/05
James Berardinelli
James Berardinelli
ReelViews
 
 
41 - 60 (sorted by date; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 >> >|
all

Latest News for The Family Stone

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A wave of new releases hits the multilplexes on Friday as the North American box office looks to bounce back after a slugglish weekend and get the final month of the year... More...

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