"The heavy lightning of reality"

HAPPINESS



Year: 1998
Country: United States
Language: English, Russian
Number: 939
Director: Todd Solondz
Starring: Jane Adams, Cynthia Stevenson, Dylan Baker, Philip Seymour Hoffman


Though the title of this movie is Happiness, this is not a fairytale of any kind, but rather the lightning of reality, and so unbearable that I can't understand why someone would make this kind of movie.

The movies is splited up in three different plots, the one thing they have in common, is that least one person in each plot are sisters, the Jordan sisters; Joy, Helen and Trish. The youngest sister Joy just broke up with her boyfriend, who later kill himself because of that. She hasn't find her way in life yet and lives with her upper-middle class sister Trish who have three children and is married to a psychiatrist, who seems not to be so satisfied with his sex life, and worse is, that he developed a sexual desire for young boys, That's right he's a pedophile. The second oldest sister Helen is a successful author who have all things in life she could wish for, fame, money and men. But she's bored with it all and wish something or some one to treat her like dirt. She one day resive a phone call from a pervert who says a lot on inappropriate and filthy thing to her. It was her neighbor, who lives in the same block, Allen (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) who uses his time of to call random numbers to unknown women, talk dirty and masturbate to them. Helen is interested, and wait for him to call back.

Happiness is classified as a dark comedy. I didn't laugh, I was horrified, specialy when it comes to the pedophile psychiatrist. I feel embarrass and so sorry for Hoffman's character. All character in this film has in their own way sink as low as possible. There's nothing in this movie that look like clichés, it's all taken right out of reality. This picture is a real reminder that life is a bitch and how dark the reality really is. If you love the Coen brothers' hilarious black comedies, you must really check this comedy out. Besides who can say no to a lovely indie film with Philip Seymour Hoffman.


Grade: A

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