Book to Movie Review: This Is Where I Leave You

Summary: The death of Judd Foxman's father marks the first time that the entire Foxman clan has congregated in years. There is, however, one conspicuous absence: Judd's wife, Jen, whose affair with his radio- shock-jock boss has recently become painfully public. Simultaneously mourning the demise of his father and his marriage, Judd joins his dysfunctional family as they reluctantly sit shiva-and spend seven days and nights under the same roof. The week quickly spins out of control as longstanding grudges resurface, secrets are revealed and old passions are reawakened. ~amazon.com

Book to Movie Review: Earlier this week you saw my book review of This Is Where I Leave You and today I bring you my movie review. Usually I don't like to read a book so close to seeing the movie, but this time it couldn't be helped. I loved that Jason Bateman was the face and voice of Judd. The way he is always understated in his expressions lends itself well. Plus I've kind of been a sucker for him since The Hogan Family days. The rest of the casting was brilliant too. I mean Jane Fonda is the perfect Hilary. She really had a lot of the laugh out loud moment. I loved the relationship between Judd and Wendy. In the book you could tell they were close but in the movie you truly felt their love for each other. They seemed to understand each other the best.

The entire cast was pretty perfect. I think it helped the Mr. Tropper wrote the screenplay as well, which kept it pretty close to the novel. While there were definite changes and some plot points left out; it didn't change the tone of the story. In fact, I found myself laughing more and crying more through different parts of the movie. Somethings work better in a novel and wouldn't translate well to the big screen. For example, most of the book we are in Judd's head and while it still is Judd's point of view, we aren't privvy to his every thought.

This is definitely dark humor but with lots of heart. There are some very funny moments and for those of us who read the book, the big twist/reveal is still there. Which made me happy to see. I felt it was essential to the book and to the family. This might be a movie that I have my husband watch with me when it comes to DVD; I think he might enjoy it.

Book To Movie: 4.5/5


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