Winter Solstice (2004)

Clever, believable, and super fun to watch. It totally has replay value.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

The acting in this movie is really good.

A family tragedy changed the lives of the Winters family. When we meet them, Jim, a landscape gardener, and his two children, Gabe and Pete, have not gotten over the death of the woman who held this family together. At this juncture of their lives, they appear resigned with what happened to them. The somewhat quiet family atmosphere is going to be suddenly changed.Jim, the father, who has not seen another woman since his wife's death, is suddenly awakened from his lethargy with the arrival of a well meaning woman who is house sitting for friends in the neighborhood. Molly is a fine listener; she hears what Jim has to tell her, as he opens to recount the anguish, he and his children, have been living.Gabe, the older son, is seeing Stacey, a lovely young woman who loves him in return. It comes as a shock when Gabe informs his father and brother he is moving to Tampa. Jim's immediate reaction is to ask "What about Stacey", to which he responds "I'm dealing with it". Gabe wants to leave the oppressive home atmosphere to re-start his life in a new area. His brother Peter, who was with his mother when the accident happened, can't express his feelings; he has kept his emotions bottled inside him. He is a bright young man, but does poorly in school, something one of his teachers, tries to get him to respond and participate in class.Josh Sternfeld created a sensitive and beautifully restrained film that shows that not all in life is rosy and that people suffer when tragedy strikes. The director, who also wrote the screen play, knows this family well. Not everything is gloom and doom because we realize, as we watch, things will improve, especially for Jim, who is attracted by a woman who clearly understands his situation.Anthony LaPaglia, who is also credited as one of the producers, shows he was the right actor to portray Jim Winters. This talented man doesn't make a false movement and stays true to his character all the time. Mr. LaPaglia, who worked with Allison Janney on Broadway in Arthur Miller's "A View From the Bridge", is again reunited with his co-star and they feel right for one another. Ms. Janney's Molly, although not a showy role, gives her an opportunity to shine.Aaron Stanford is seen as the older son, Gabe, and Mark Webber is Peter. Both actors do a credible job under the sure direction of Mr. Sternfeld. Ron Livingston is the kind teacher who sees possibilities in Peter and Michele Monaghan is perfect as Stacey, the girl that is dumped without much logic, by Gabe."Winter Solstice" was beautifully photographed by Harlan Bosmajian, who captures the world of suburbia in all its glory. The atmospheric music is by John Leventhal. Josh Sternfeld created an intimate portrait about pain and anguish, as this family

Dialogue in this movie very good. It's perceptive, emotional, and somber. Each of the lead characters in the movie are dealing with some sort of emotional stress, and it manifests itself in what is said and actions or non-actions pretty realistically. The romance created was very well handled too...nothing really over-the-top, but rather the pain and anguish the Dad is experiencing from the present and past emphasized. We know it will take time, and so the movie does a great job of inferring to us what will happen. Would've liked to have seen perhaps a little more development with the younger brother, but that's minor. On the whole the movie only runs about 90 min, and its pacing is deliberate, thoughtful, and slow, but its nonetheless a good movie and drama.

Josh Sternfeld has done the unthinkable. He has elected to tell a story merely by allowing the viewer to overhear the minimal dialogue of the characters without supplying a linear plot or explanation of how a little family fell apart.Landscaper Jim Winters (Anthony LaPaglia is a brilliant role) is the single father of two sons - Gabe (Aaron Stanford) who is the older and looking for ways to move away from his boring little small town home to find breathing space in Florida, and Pete (Mark Webber) a confused kid who wears a hearing aide and only sporadically seems to tune in to life and school. The three men live a fairly orderly life since the death 5 years ago of the wife/mother in a car accident which Pete survived. Jim tries to maintain some semblance of family but just cannot quite step out of his ill-defined grief to get a perspective on life. Obviously some forces of change are needed to heal this family of men.Into the neighborhood moves Molly Ripkin (Allison Janney) who is house sitting for friends while she breaks away from being a paralegal to try her hand at making unique jewelry. She connects with Jim, tries to connect with his sons, but at the least she introduces a figure of gentle concern and focused presence. Pete finds some understanding from a summer school teacher (Ron Livingston) and begins to see some concept of meaning to his life. Gabe's decision to leave for Florida's promise of better life means he also must say goodbye to his only rock of realism - his girlfriend Stacey (Michelle Monaghan). With all of these elements of change in the air the story just ends. What will happen now is left to us to decide.Yes, the film is slow moving, relying on minimal dialogue and more on silences and gazes. But Sternfeld opens this little family drama in such a tender way that we find ourselves wholly committed to the plight of each character. He makes us care. And that is the true beauty of minimalist art in film-making. The acting is first rate, with LaPaglia and Janney giving performances that deserve attention come awards time. Highly recommended for those who appreciate quiet sensitive films. Grady Harp

As metaphors go towards reflecting character, this one is a good as it gets: Gardens "fall apart pretty quickly, and you have to take care of them." In Winter Solstice, Jim Winters' (Anthony LaPaglia) family needs plenty of care as it recovers from the loss of his wife and the two boys' mother. That piece of debut writer/director Josh Sternfield's dialog is reminiscent of Miles' discourse about pinot noir in Sideways--T. S. Eliot's "objective correlative" describes the state of the characters.In the Seinfeld mode, but without the humor, Winter Solstice is about nothing; little happens to set up traditional Greek rising and falling actions. It is profoundly about getting through without letting mom's death freeze you in sorrow. That older son Gabe (Aaron Stanford) plans to leave New Jersey for Florida is just another disappointment. That son Pete (Mark Webber) is a summer school regular hiding a bright mind must be endured until he emerges from his winter.Jim does as well as can be expected keeping his family whole. As for himself, his landscaping business keep him alive with the artistic promise of more beautiful flowers and the humanistic comfort of working with people and getting to know new temporary neighbor, Molly Ripkin (Allison Janney).The simplicity of the days coupled with the minimalism of dialog and plot defines this small movie, which executive produce LaPaglia must have known wouldn't make any money. But he made it, as he did the estimable Lantana, for reasons that may be tied to the garden analogy, taking care to be more than a TV star. As Gabe says about leaving his fine girlfriend behind, "That's my problem, and I'm dealing with it." I admire father, son, and director's ideals—they give us interesting small films such as Winter Solstice. As Shakespeare's Richard says in King Henry VI, Part iii, "I, that did never weep, now melt with woe/That winter should cut off spring-time so."