FAMILY (2018)

2018’s FAMILY, written and directed by Laura Steinel, is one of the best hidden gems of the last decade. A film I remember hearing absolutely nothing about before I initially decided to see what it had to offer. A movie you used to stumble upon back in the day at the video store for those of us old enough to remember and take pleasure in that experience. Friday nights spent going from the pizza place where my siblings and I would order pies to take home to bake, to the small chain video store. When we were younger, of course, we didn’t have the hours to peruse the shelves, like I later would as an adult in places like Rogers Video and later Blockbuster. Scanning the shelves for something other than the big releases, most of which I had seen at least once before or I had convinced myself they weren’t worthy of my time. Every so often, though, you would luck out and see a box that would spark your interest. In FAMILY’s case the poster art featured Taylor Schilling’s arm draped over the shoulder of her younger co-star, Bryn Vale, and her face painted like a juggalo, the fan base of nu metal outfit Insane Clown Posse.

Obviously that wasn’t how I stumbled upon FAMILY. Streaming had, to paraphrase The Buggles, killed the video store star and so I was left to stumble upon FAMILY on Netflix. Like I had many times before and many times since, while scrolling through the maligned monolith of Netflix, I convinced myself that I had seen everything there was to see. Out of desperation I decided to settle on the next film that sparked even a flicker of interest.

I won’t gloss over it and say I was immediately floored by FAMILY, at least before I hit play. It looked like just another comedy time waster, I didn’t read the plot synopsis, or look any further than the sort of interesting face of the cover. I figured I would hit play, sit back, and let its mediocrity wash over me as it whiled away another 84 minutes of my life. The film seemed like something I most definitely wasn’t the target audience for; something that was going to have to work to win me over.

You see though that’s the beauty about assumptions and hidden gems: sometimes things surprise you, make you feel like an ass for your preconceived notions and challenge them. And that is exactly the experience I had with Laura Steinel’s film.

Before I get to that though, a little about the film, for those of you unfamiliar with it: The movie stars Taylor Schilling of Orange Is The New Black fame. She plays the workaholic slightly narcissistic Kate, who has little idea how to navigate the new world she has been reluctantly forced to tackle. Her young charge is played adeptly by newcomer Bryn Vale as Maddie, a socially awkward 11-year-old who prefers karate to ballet and likes making weapons out of wood; most definitely not your “typical” eleven-year-old girl in America.

Now I am sure none of this will seem exceptional or even noteworthy, to you dear reader but hear me out! It is guilty perhaps of being a gender bent UNCLE BUCK, but I assure you that is a strength and not a weakness. It’s a film that doesn’t subvert clichés entirely, but instead offers minor tweaks to the formula.

After their first day together, Schilling’s Kate and Vale’s Maddie bond over a makeover she gives to her young niece, who clearly feels that this is a step too far, remarking to her heart-in-the-right-place aunt, “I don’t need to be tan, I am an indoor kid.” Of course the makeover goes poorly, but it was the moment that won me over. The characters’ personalities were allowed to breathe and flourish in that moment of believable bonding that doesn’t feel rushed or forced. That feels like an interaction that could actually take place between two people in their unfamiliar circumstance instead of some soulless manipulation spewed out by a drone the way so many of the bigger spectacle films often feel like nowadays.

FAMILY also uses an interesting metaphor throughout the film to track the changes in Kate’s character.  A malfunctioning Keurig machine gets progressively worse throughout the film, which coincides perfectly with the subtle changes Kate is experiencing. She begins the film the picture of a put together, no nonsense hedge fund manager. Seemingly perfect, at least in the eyes of the socially awkward niece she is tasked with caring for. But as the machine worsens, the veneer that she has worked so hard to project to the world begins to show signs of stress.  She is outfoxed by a younger associate, Erin, at a business lunch. While Kate tires to keep up with clients notorious heavy drinking, Erin was drinking soda instead, not succumbing to the peer pressure of the clients to drink. Kate arrives at a meeting with Maddie’s principal in the immediate aftermath entirely drunk. Changes are taking place. Over dinner the first night, Kate admits to Maddie how the most unpopular children often become extremely successful adults.  It is another moment intended to show kindness and warmth, but is obvious from Vale’s crestfallen look that the mark was missed. It’s exactly the wrong thing to say, but in a lesser film it would be overly acknowledged by all involved. Instead the moment is handled with an honesty that most family comedies lack.

Another area where FAMILY thrives instead of falters is allowing Kate another chance to see what’s missing in her life. Not just the warm bonds of the titular word but also with the inclusion of Sensei Pete, played beautifully by Brian Tyree Henry. They bond over Maddie at various moments, including a quasi-date which sets the film’s climax in motion. It shows the audience a Kate that is more relaxed and at ease, enjoying the comfort and kindness that can come when one stops focussing too much on one aspect of their lives. Of course, this can come off as cliché, but it is handled with grace and kindness, rather than any attempt to rush a relationship between the two. It’s played as a simple moment of adults enjoying one another’s presence.

The beauty in my mind of hidden gems is that they are able to weather all of the clichés and use them not as flaws, but as reminders that clichés are not always a detriment. In this regard FAMILY succeeds more regularly than it stumbles. Through an indie rock montage near its end, Kate has the meltdown and comes to the realization that perhaps she has been a lone wolf long enough. That perhaps it is okay to surrender to the creature comforts that family provides. The metaphor of the malfunctioning Keurig machine, shattered on the floor of her office where she is on the precipice of a breakdown. Of course, a new Keurig machine is procured, working perfectly obviously signifying a change in Kate. It is a cliché that is so obvious and overdone, but films like FAMILY don’t work if a character doesn’t entirely change, or at least is a noticeably different person than they were at the beginning.

I don’t know if everyone will be won over by the film and charmed as I was in watching, but I hope if my piece does anything, it allows people to see it with an open mind.