Film Talk: Revolutionary Road

As our Oscar talk continues here at The Pink Mixer this month, we are jumping ahead to present day, and focusing on Revolutionary Road – a film currently out in theaters and nominated for 3 (Best Supporting Actor, Achievement in Costume Design, Achievement in Art Direction) statues for the 2009 Academy Awards.

Before we go any further, let it be known that The Pink Mixer finds that number of nominations woefully inadequate after viewing the film this weekend.

Adapted from the impressive, moving, superbly written novel by Richard Yates, Revolutionary Road tells the story of an American marriage seen through the eyes of Frank and April Wheeler. It is a story of 1950’s America, suburbia, family, relationships, and the question (currently running through the movie’s trailers): Can two people break away from the ordinary without breaking apart?

Driven to change their fates, recapture their lost dreams and not be trapped by social confines, April hatches an audacious plan to start all over again, to leave the comforts of Connecticut behind for the great unknown of Paris. But when the plan is put in motion, each spouse and their marriage is pushed to extremes.

Having read the novel earlier, I was not surprised by the action unfolding in this film. The adaption is excellent, with only slight nuances missing from the book. Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio are two of the greatest working actors today and give some of the most haunting, beautiful performances I have ever seen. This is not a fairy tale with a Hollywood ending, nor, (let’s be honest here) will one leave the theater with an uplifted spirit after viewing. Still, it is a remarkable, realistic story and one that deserves to be seen.

Just as the two actors I mentioned above deserved nominations for Best Actor (Leo) and Best Supporting (Kate). Sometimes, it seems, Hollywood can be guilty of not recognizing two of its brightest gems.