August: Osage County (English, 2013)

Meryl Streep is at her scenario-chewing best as Violet Weston – the drug addicted mother with a bad childhood, spitting venom onscreen. She is strong willed, matter-of-factly, manipulative & rude in her words and behavior. But at the end the audience does empathize with her.

Julia Roberts as her elder daughter is the right match for the grand dame opposite her. It’s a great comeback for her after playing loads and loads of goodie characters.

Of the other supporting actors that deserve a mention, Julianne Nicholson shines with her natural and simplistic mannerisms, playing the youngest daughter who ‘had’ to take care of her mother. Margo Martindale as Violet’s sister Mattie Fae and Chris Cooper as her husband do a great job and really impress with their acting.

There are a couple of set pieces which are a delight to watch and have been very well directed by John Wells. The family dinner sequence which starts very slowly but gradually ramps up into a tense situation with verbal abuses and ends with a literal fist fight is a very good example. Extraordinary acting all through!

The cinematography is impressive – giving ample space to highlight the acting. The arid desert-like Osage county is captured in a way that portrays the arid mindscapes of the involved people. The music by Gustavo Santaolalla stands out at times, but this wouldn’t be one of his best works.

The script by Tracy Letts based on his Pulitzer award winning play of the same name is great and provides the fodder for the actors to elevate it. It smartly positions every character at its place and provides valid reasoning for their actions.