Running with Scissors
Based on the Personal Memoirs of Augusten Burroughs
Growing up in the 1970s, young Augusten (Joseph Cross) lives a middle-class existence with an alcoholic father (Alec Baldwin) and a bipolar mother (Annette Bening), an unpublished poet with delusions of becoming famous. When his parents divorce, Augusten's mother sends him to live with her wildly unorthodox psychiatrist, Dr. Finch (Brian Cox) and his eccentric extended family.
As Augusten unwittingly becomes part of the family, he descends into a kind of surreal childhood hell. Yet, he will also find optimism among the horror, hilarity in the insanity and even love amid the dilapidated ruins as he never loses his spirit or his resilience. Ultimately, Augusten will survive through the most extraordinary of circumstances.
Member Reviews
This movie is full of itself - movie_goer
A family like Augusten Burroughs shouldn't be relived unless your studying psychiatry.
Very strange true story based on the memoirs by Burroughs about his odd childhood with his own estranged family and weird adopted 2nd family.
The movie is absurd to be taken seriously as an examination of mental illness and the psychiatric profession would Marvel professionals. But cannot come to the conclusion that it is a comedy either (would be offensive if so to Mental Ill people). Depicting his mother as a psuedo-intellectual monster who terrorizes her fellow poets makes the whole thing feel like revenge on her tortured soul and everyone around her. The talented award cast fail to save a bestselling book turned Horrible movie.self indulgent - gingericecream
The trailer looked interesting but the film fell flat. The self indulgent, narcassistic characters were hard to watch and the events felt disconnected. The basic story, of a young man neglected by useless parents and left vulnerable to the abuse of a mentally ill and highly manipulative man is a tragedy. There is nothing funny occurring in the film, the fact that it is rated as a comedy suggests that the reviewer is equally disturbed as the characters.Not a Great Adaptation - FilmJunkie
What an absolute disappointment. I had ignored the critics and waited to see this adaptation of the highly enjoyable book because I had faith in Ryan Murphy as a director. However what he puts to screen here is little more than Wes Wnderson lite, and hardly a solid representation of the chaotic mess of a book.
It is the story of Augusten Burroughs, a teenager with a psychotic poet mother who is left to live with her therapist and his family.
In the book the characters are fully fleshed, real human beings who do insane things due to strange explanations. In the book, Augusten is dramatic and involved in the lives of these people.
In the movie, the characters are one note. Natalie (Evan Rachel Wood) goes from being an overweight snarky gal to a gorgeous genius who is the only ally of Augusten. Hope (Gwyneth Paltrow) loses any relatability and dresses like one of the compound wives from 'Big Love'.
The good representations come in the form of Dr. Finch, perfectly portrayed by Brian Cox in all his madness and decorum in the face of that madness; and Annette Bening as Deirdre Burroughs, Augusten's bipolar mother. These characterizations are rich and alive and they make the film tolerable.
Thus I must conclude by saying: read the book.
Member Reviews
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This movie is full of itself - movie_goer
A family like Augusten Burroughs shouldn't be relived unless your studying psychiatry.
Very strange true story based on the memoirs by Burroughs about his odd childhood with his own estranged family and weird adopted 2nd family.
The movie is ...self indulgent - gingericecream
The trailer looked interesting but the film fell flat. The self indulgent, narcassistic characters were hard to watch and the events felt disconnected. The basic story, of a young man neglected by useless parents and left vulnerable to the abuse of a mentally ...Not a Great Adaptation - FilmJunkie
What an absolute disappointment. I had ignored the critics and waited to see this adaptation of the highly enjoyable book because I had faith in Ryan Murphy as a director. However what he puts to screen here is little more than Wes Wnderson lite, and hardly ...