Top of the World

Because the movie is so ambitious, it would have to be crystal clear to obtain its goal of truly revealing all the characters, at least to the point of acceptance by the viewer that you are seeing a real person. I just would like to emphasize that one relationship had my interest and has my censure. This was a psychiatrist and his beautiful wife who had been his patient. It is totally inappropriate for a psychiatrist to have sex with his/her client. The character of the wife had been betrayed and knew it. The psychiatrist could not see beyond his own desires - at best he found redemption in his wife's arms - but that was not her price to pay. It was his. I acknowledge that there is a school of psychiatry that promotes sexual relations between therapist and client. This is nonsense and foolishness. The client is in therapy because other people earlier in life crossed boundaries that should have remained intact, a glib summing up I realize. Anyway for the therapist to also violate boundaries which in most states and provinces s/he is bound by oath NOT to cross is an evil in its own category. Shame on him (the 'psychiatrist' in the film.)

Far from my type of movie, but I think that I know goodness when I see it. Unfavorite genre notwithstanding, this gets very positive comments from me. Not that there's a nice neat conclusion to this picture. But, then, that's life, isn't it? Sometimes a lotta loose ends. Or maybe it was just the mood that I was in when I watched it. Whatever the reason(s), I just can't say anything negative about this effort, even though there are several depressing factors to the storyline. Once again...that's life. It's about relationships...some growing; some decaying; amongst a sextet of acquaintances who have gotten away for the Thanksgiving weekend to a spacious, Colorado-Rockies residence, owned by a 59-year-old man who was killed recently in a plane crash. At the estate are the dead man's mid-30s-ish, radio-announcer/girlfriend of eight years; his unmarried son of about that age; the son's childhood buddy and his wife; and her sister and boyfriend. The son is a wannabe writer; and the boyfriend's job entails daily dealings with scribes and their works. The buddy's spouse is splitting with hubby; has "the hots" for the son; and shows his jottings to the boyfriend. The sisters carry on as only siblings can. There is much other, well-done, interpersonal contact here, too; so, you see how much connection there can be, right? That's the point. The acting is excellent - believable; convincing. Just like life, we don't necessarily know someone's future fate, but this film reminds me that we SHOULD CARE.