The Days of Wine and Roses

The actors give brave, intimate performances on the verge of going over the top. The remake is a better film overall.

I was not enamored with this. I have seen the film too ... and I don't love it either. I did like the TV version better, mostly because of Piper Laurie's really endearingly eccentric performance. Otherwise, it feels a bit too much like the origin of the TV issue of the week movie.

Powerful stuff, only slightly weakened by the intrusion of occasional soap opera-esque dramatic moments. Several scenes seem like they could only have been written from experience. Speaking of which, it's always a bit alienating when writers seem so determined to push the AA 12-step programme. I'm sure the programme deserves praise and writing is sincere, but it always feels like some kind of weird product placement.

While AA has its problems in theory and practice, I won't damn a positive or even proselytizing portrayal on that basis alone. But this is simply poorly structured around a big long share, in recurring flashbacks that sap the story of momentum and spontaneity. Exiting them two-thirds through does not solve this problem, or add tension regarding the couple's fates, but rather underlines the awkward construction of the whole thing. This and most other elements would be improved in the feature.