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Title: Good actors in search of a purpose
Review: Make no mistake: Annette Bening does a fantastic job here as the mentally unbalanced, frustrated poet, and mother of the real life protagonist, Augusten Burroughs. Alec Baldwin does a nice turn as the alky father, while Paltrow, Wood, Cox, et. al. portray the messy and crazy Finch family which adopts Augusten for a while. Joseph Fiennes is also great in his role as Augusten's sometime lover.Sure, it's a great cast, but the year that it covers seems to drag on and on, with pervasive musical interludes, an unbelievable portrait of the Finches and their "house," and it is a chore to get through this film. There seems to be no point or purpose, there is very little humor, and it is quite unsatisfying as a memoir.Too bad these actors are wasted.
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