Jack

Jack is a low key and sensitive film dealing with sexuality. In this case the sexuality of Jack's father who comes out of the closet, leaves his wife and son but still wants to maintain a relationship with him.

Ron Silver plays Paul the gay father. He is the heart of the film and his earnest longing for his son to understand his predicament and desire to have a normal relationship with Jack is the key performance in this movie.

Stockard Channing is the mother who at first is embittered. She has lost her husband to another man and has to raise Jack on his own until she comes round to have Paul involved again in the family life.

A young Anton Yelchin plays Jack who now having to go through puberty also has the embarrassment of having a gay dad once the kids at school find out. I kept thinking Yelchin gulped some helium every time he spoke his lines.

Jack is angry at his dad at first but the film opens out as he becomes friendly with a school girl whose dad also came out as gay while his best friend has parents who are in a violent relationship.

I guess the subtext of the film is that parents can screw you up whether straight or gay. I just felt the film was a little too neat and small scale for my liking even though it was handled sensitively.

Long ago one said: "Give me a god kid and you will see how great parent am I". But reality is somewhat different. This is a great story about growing; finding identity, but ... Being a parent for a while I would say that Jack's way of thinking is something that I saw with my daughter, rather than son. The way he understands social relations is more feminine. Someone could expect that Jack is more vulnerable than he really is. His self-confidence is unexpectedly high. Nevertheless, movie keeps attention till the end, and moral of the story is intact. Film has good rhythm, sometimes catchy photography with emphasis on ordinary urban life situations. Really good family movie that any parent could discuss with their youngster!

This film show shows us the life of a young man Jack. He is a normal teenager, who's life is turned upside down after his parents divorce, and he discovers his father is in a gay relationship. Jack must now not only come to terms with his own problems as a teenager, but the realization that his parents are actual people too. Every actor in this movie is amazing, being a teenager myself I wasn't sure I would be interested in this sort of movie. The 'gay' story on the flipside of a heterosexual teen being identified as having a gay father and how he must deal with the social backlash, gave me a new perspective something not many movies to do tell well now days. The story is simply about a teenager coming to grips with the world around him. Using great story, terrific acting and brilliant filming techniques I think everyone should take a little time to watch this movie, and learn what it has to teach us while being entertained, 10/10

'Jack' is a pleasant surprise as not many people (me included) had heard of it before. It is a perceptive film about a teenager coming to terms with different aspects of life. In particular the realization that his father is gay. The film has great performances all round; especially Ron Silver as the father. 'Jack' is an entertaining film with alot of heart.

This was an honest and moving film. The actors all did fine jobs, adults and children alike. Some movies seem to try to convince you of something while you're watching, this one didn't. It was simply a good story that makes you think. You're watching this family's life unfold in front of you (or fall apart in front of you depending on how you want to look at it). There are sort of two stories going on at once and both are interesting. The second story involves domestic violence and seeing the kids and their different reactions was interesting. This movie basically revolves around parents that both adore their son Jack yet he's presented with a lot to deal with. The second family in the story have their own more common problems and while the mom in that family (Wendy Crewson) seems like a total sweetheart and a doting, loving mom and friend, she is also dealing with her own huge problems at home. All of the trials these people endure they handle well for the most part. It is an interesting laid back movie. The kid that played Jack was cool in this movie and Stockard Channing was awesome (as usual) as was Wendy Crewson (despite her smaller role).