Amores Inversos

"If you and Edith weren't so good at writing letters..." Johanna Parry (Wiig) is a caregiver who has worked for the same woman since she was 15. During this time she rarely left the house and lived a sheltered life. When she passes she takes a job working for an elderly man and his granddaughter Sabitha. Sabitha isn't excited about having a nanny so her and her friend respond to a letter Johanna wrote to Sabitha's father Ken (Pearce). This starts in motion a "relationship" that unintentionally helps everyone involved. This is another movie that is hard to review. The acting is good and the story is interesting and very well written. The only downside is that its just like watching real life. There is really no excitement or any real intrigue. Not even a will they/wont't they feeling. Kristin Wiig is starting to become like Bill Murray in the way that she either does laugh-out-loud-rolling-in-the-aisles comedy or very deliberately paced not quite comedy/not quite drama films. This is a movie that when it was over my only thought was...huh, so that's done. Overall, not a bad movie but it was like watching real life play out and that's really not why I watch movies. I like to have something in it that makes me think. This didn't. I give it a C.

This is a very well-done, gentle romantic movie, with excellent acting, especially from Kristen Wiig. Family members and I had not heard of Ms. Wiig before seeing this movie recently on a movie channel. We understand now that she is mainly a comedic actor, so it was good to see this movie without knowing that in advance.

This movie seems geared more toward an audience from the South or Midwest. Members of my family have hired young female caregivers like Johanna Parry (Ms. Wiig's character, who is the movie's main character) to take care of our parents before their death. So we can probably better relate to Ms. Parry than many folks who might consider her a little odd.

This movie does something that Hollywood rarely does: it shines a light (and a sympathetic one at that) on working-class American white people. We know of working-class white women like Ms. Parry, who are not "ambitious" (in the traditional sense of the word), and thus seem content not having many impressive possessions, work titles, social status, etc. So to us, the movie is quite realistic in this sense.

Our only criticisms of the movie: the ending seems a bit rushed (is there a director's cut?); and, knowing some working-class men with drug problems, we felt that actor Guy Pearce was too handsome, polished, well-built, and well-spoken to play Ken, the movie's principal male character. Actors like Edward Norton would have been more believable in the role.

But, on the whole, we highly recommend this movie, and hope it draws a large viewer-ship via cable TV.

This film, even though it is a slow burn art-house film, really has a lot going for it. The casting is perfect! I never expected to see Guy Pierce as an Americana low life, but he totally pulls it off. Kristen Wiig was perfectly cast in the completely understated role. Sometimes she is drawn inward so much, that you almost wish she had a moment of warmth that was more than just nuance. I wanted her to have a little outward joy on film to help ease some of the difficulty in watching the character trying to cope with herself in the world.

But I really loved some of the sweet moments of warmth in the film, however, reserved they happened to be. I was touched by several moments, especially the moments between Hailee Steinfeld and Kristen Wiig.

Over all, this movie was my cup of tea, I just wish it had a little more range for Kristen's character to help swing the needle up and down a bit.

This film tells the story of a lonely woman who works as a live in carer for elderly people. She falls in love with a man after a cruel trick player on her.

"Hateship Loveship" borders on being a romantic comedy, but it's more bitter than sweet. Johanna is a caring and loving woman, and yet she is at the receiving end of a very cruel joke. She gets much of my sympathy, even though she hangs on to the man despite the man's numerous shortcomings. The way she is treated by the man is truly despicable and shocking, yet she hangs on for the wrong reason. It's quite a tragedy that makes me heart heavy. I think Johanna's robotic appearance is due to her working as a carer since teenage, and as she says, it's the only world she knows. She doesn't know what love and affection is, which makes me even more angry at the way she got exploited.

It's a sad romantic film, which is not a usual combination. I enjoyed watching it.

Being funny on the screen seems effortless to Kristen Wiig. Her comedic clowning skills are on a par with Lucille Ball and Shelly Long. Sincerity, however, doesn't come as easily — especially when her character is plain and charmless.

HATESHIP LOVESHIP sat on the Thriftway DVD rental shelf for several weeks. I took note of its great cast: Wiig, supported by Guy Pierce, Nick Nolte, Hailee Steinfeld, Christine Lahti, and Jennifer Jason Leigh. What could go wrong there? My memories of GIRL MOST LIKELY (which was supposed to be a comedy, but whiffed miserably) prevented me from taking the chance. Wiig's performance as said GIRL lacked any charm whatsoever; she was drab, homely, and totally unappealing. So, what was she going to do with this, her first dramatic role? It didn't look promising at all.

Finally, I took HATESHIP LOVESHIP home. And, I'm so very glad I did. What a splendid collaboration between star, cast, screenwriter, director and crew in this adaptation of Alice Munro's short story. Ain't no heroes here. These are real, extremely flawed human beings. They might live next door to anyone. They might be anyone.

Wiig's Johanna is a caretaker. That's what makes her life make sense. And, that's her odd beauty. She also finds herself attracted to bad boy Ken (Pierce) a drug-addicted user with delusions of accomplishing something that will finally give him independence.

But no one in this story seems to feel entitled to anything. They've all been wounded. So they protect themselves.

No one is hanging from a cliff. No clock is ticking. No fuse is burning down. Yet, somehow watching Johanna scrub a long-neglected bathtub filled me with worry, hoping she wasn't setting herself up for disaster.

The sex scenes, while not showing any nudity, are luscious and beautiful. I hope to see more of Liza Johnson. She is one gifted and inspired director.

Yeah, maybe Ken will never change. But it won't be for Johanna's lack of patience, and devotion. The story leaves us rootin' for the dude — and loving her. The doormat has won his respect and admiration. And ours. She deserves it.