Carolina

View Date: 11/27/09

This movie starring Julia Stiles and Shirley Maclaine is about three girls with an absent father who live with their eccentric grandmother. Stiles’ character has left home and established herself with a job and apartment, trying to have a normal life compared to the one in which she was raised. She is embarrassed when introducing her new boyfriend to her family, and then tries to mold her family to her idea of what a family is supposed to be. This, of course, leads to tension until she comes to realize through tragedy that she has a loving, caring family, no matter how crazy the situation might be.

I had never heard of this movie, but it came recommended to me by my mother so I decided to give it a shot. Of course there are the standard plot elements of family tension, and I could really feel for Carolina’s embarrassment by her relatives. But Shirley Maclaine’s presence and humor took this movie to a different level. She could have you laughing out loud with some of her antics, and even though they were scripted, no one could have pulled it off as perfectly as her. The tragedy I mentioned above really struck me and I had a hard time trying not to sob uncontrollably.

10 words or less: Recommended, even if you’ve never heard of it.