The patriarch of the family has died and the mother asks her four children to come home for the funeral and sit shiva for seven days as outlined in the jewish faith. This movie is the story of those seven days…

Story: This is a well written story. It feels real and each character’s story line is well developed. Everyone has a story and this film really showcases how varied stories can be from brother to brother, sister to brother, mother to children.

The writers also do a good job of not letting any moss grow under any one story. It keeps moving without any slow points or odd story diversions. AND the slight irreverence gives is a good kick. It’s witty… very witty.

Performances: Every single person in this film is great. Jane Fonda as the mother; Corey Stoll, Tina Fey, Jason Bateman and Adam Driver as the kids are all fantastic.

Then there’s the secondary characters – Timothy Olyphant as the neighbor/soul mate, Dax Shepard as the arrogant playboy boss, Connie Britton as the rich older woman fiance, Kathryn Hahn as the desperate-to-have-a-baby wife and Aaron Lazar as the career driven A-hole husband. Everyone and everything is represented…

But, I have to give a special mention to Jane Fonda. Her character made the movie.

Visual: Suburban New York. Family home on a tree lined street. Dark, dusty basement with an old sofa bed and faulty wiring. Youngest son arrives to the funeral in a Porsche 911 convertible blasting Hip Hop. Shiva. Good job visual team…

Rating: The expectation is that this movie should be pretty standard issue; Father dies, kids show up for funeral, someone has a big argument… okay. But, this version is just a little bit more likeable. The details are just a slight more interesting. I give it a good solid A.

I don’t think there’s anyone in the movie that is unlikeable. The casting is perfect and the story interesting enough that you don’t feel the time go by; I do wonder what happens next…

See this movie. At the very least, it might make you feel better about your life…