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Jacob Lofland, Josh Lucas, Elizabeth Banks are very successful. The music of the movie is also very good. Cinematography is also excellent. So why is this movie rated so low? People around the world do not understand. Congratulations also to Sara Colangelo.

"Your testimony as you can imagine is of the utmost importance to us."

Little Accidents is Sara Colangelo's debut feature film and despite some of the issues I had with the pacing and some unexpected turns the story takes it still had some solid performances that kept me engaged with the movie. With a little more polishing Colangelo may become an important filmmaker because she does manage to deliver some well crafted scenes and interesting characters. It is a character study of a small American coal mining town that has recently experienced a fatal accident that claimed the lives of several miners. Amos Jenkins (Boyd Holbrook) is the only survivor and on the one hand he is feeling forced to testify against the executives by the families' who have lost their loved ones, and on the other, miners from the same company want him to keep quiet so they can continue to work without experiencing any setbacks. He would rather stay quiet than say anything. The blame is mostly geared towards Bill Doyle (Hosh Lucas) who is an executive of the mining company. Meanwhile he and his wife, Diane (Elizabeth Banks), are dealing with the disappearance of their son JT (Travis Tope). The only person who knows what happened to JT is a young boy named Owen (Jacob Lofland) who would rather keep the secret to himself than confess what actually happened. Owen's father was also a victim of a coal mining accident and we see the contrast between his family and the Doyle's. Once we are introduced to all these characters we begin to see how some of them overlap with each other in a small town where secrets are hard to be kept. Colangelo sets up the story pretty convincingly but once the characters begin to interact with each other there are moments that feel forced and melodramatic. There is just too much going on in the town for a film like this.

What I enjoyed the most about Little Accidents despite all the melodrama and forced interactions it introduces were the performances from the cast. Elizabeth Banks has a much more subtle performance than what we are used to seeing her in and Josh Lucas is also believable as the mining executive who is trying to keep busy at work to keep his mind off of the loss of his son. However the two stand outs in this film are Boyd Holbrook and Jacob Lofland who are internally wrestling with secrets of their own. Lofland was outstanding in MUD although most of the attention was geared towards Tye Sheridan's performance. He is the one who has gotten much better roles, but that doesn't mean Lofland should be ignored and in this film he proves he has the acting chops to carry a film.

The greatest failure of Little Accidents is that it tries to cover too much melodrama in a short period of time. Instead of focusing on one of the accidents, it introduces us to another one and shows how some of the characters overlap with each other. I didn't find the relationship between Banks and Holbrook believable and it all felt rushed. The underlying message of the film seems to be that "truth will set you free," but in the end it was all too obvious and the audience is left unrewarded for the time they had invested in the film. I found some of the camera movement a bit distracting at times, but that is my only complaint in the technical department. In the end, Little Accidents simply doesn't deliver despite an interesting premise.

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I appreciated this little film, good atmosphere and acting too. But in the genre I preferred STEEL COUNTRY, also set in a small town where every one knows each other, also with a gripping characters symphony. But I could never dive deep enough in this story, I still wonder exactly why. something, a little, tiny link is missing; maybe it is just before my nose. Maybe because of the nowhere ending, maybe...But I recommend it.

"You gonna be the big shot that closes down the Bonford Coal Company? We lost men in there. I'd keep to myself, if I was you. Just keep telling them you don't remember. Try to get back to work, back to being productive."

You made plans for a cozy movie night ? Are you sitting all comfortably in your seat buried under bags of chips and a bottle of Coca-Cola at your fingertips? Then I advise you to put on another movie than "Little accidents" because this movie won't make you happy. Not even a little bit. It shows a series of truly sad and depressing circumstances and occurrences. A fatal mine accident leaving 10 miners dead, an unfortunate incident with consequences, the wrenching dilemmas, the immense grief after losing a loved one, not knowing what's the fate of a missing person and the misunderstanding within a marriage. It's all included in this social drama, set in a dying town that looks so gray as if it was covered by a layer of coal dust. A story about two people in this "village without a future" whose lives run parallel, without them realizing it, with several points of contact : a dramatic event, the grueling truth that they keep secret and the decision whether or not to reveal it. Eventually, these parallel lines intersect and end in the same way.

"Little Accidents" is a melodrama in which various interest groups are diametrically opposed to each other. On the one hand you have the working people whose lives depend on whether or not they close the Bonford Coal Company. And on the other you have the representatives of the victims and the unions who want to sue the company for negligence and pursuit of profit on the back of the underprivileged workers, making them work in hazardous conditions. Just like Amos Jenkins (Boyd Holbrook) did. He's the sole survivor of the mine accident. After a rehab, he returned to his town in West Virginia and finds himself immediately confronted with this dilemma. He's constantly harassed by both interest groups. At the same time we meet Owen Briggs (Jacob Lofland), son of one of the victims in this mine disaster. His mother Kendra (Chloë Sevigny) tries to pick up the thread again, while Owen takes care of his younger brother James (Beau Wright), an endearing little boy who has Down syndrome. Although Kendra overwhelms both boys with electronic gizmo's, Owen is still struggling to integrate into the community and seeks the company of a group of young people who in the end only bully and exploit him.

The central figure of this group of young people is JT Doyle (Travis Tope), son of Bill (Josh Lucas) and Diane Doyle (Elizabeth Banks), leader and the one who turns up to be missing one day. The only one who knows the true facts about this disappearance, is Owen. But anxiously he keeps his mouth shut about it. This ensures the parents of JT facing a period of long waiting for the outcome of the investigation. The reason why this secret remains with Owen, is the fact that JT's father is one of the board members of the coal mine, who could be responsible for the fatal accident. Probably Owen thinks he could be accused of acting in an act of revenge. The moment the statement of lightning will be seen as untrue, his position as a director of this company will be practically untenable. Diane suffers the most under the disappearance of her son, while father Bill launches himself entirely into his work, and feels more and more neglected which leads to a surprising affair. The result is that the lives of Amos, Owen and Diana get intermingled because of these circumstances.

It's a pretty depressing film. Don't expect smiling faces. It feels more like a competition in "who looks the most depressing". Holbrook plays a surprising role as the half-crippled laborer who's facing a difficult choice. The choice between the relatives of the victims and the non-affected who still benefit from the fact that the only industry in their town still exists. The helplessness and at the same time the shame of being the only survivor, is written all over his face. "It was a waste to save me,if you think about it. I ain't got no family, no kids."as he admitted himself. Also Lofland (known for his role as a helpful teen in "Mud") plays an outstanding role. That intolerable burden he's carrying is played by him in a masterful way. Even in the quiet moments you can see that suffering. Elizabeth Banks (known as Effie Trinket in "The Hunger Games" and as Lydia Mercer in "Man on a Ledge") manages to bring a difficult role to a successful conclusion. She has no problems to bring a mix of diverse emotions: pride, despair, reconciliation, loneliness and dejection. All in all a talented cast.

"Little accidents" isn't a perfect film and has a tendency to become cheesy. It's only sadness you witness and some used themes aren't very original. After a while I got the feeling that it surely was overly packed with gloomy events. But in retrospect you can only admit that this is just part of everyday life. However, the lived through renditions and worked out characters ensure that this gloomy and dark film still makes a good impression. In other words, a wonderful film that shows how disaster can strike mercilessly.

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Dramas are normally not the kind of movie I'm going for so I was not expecting much before watching this movie. After seeing it I must say I'm not disappointed at all. It's certainly worth a watch. It's a movie about all kinds of accidents, guilt and remorse, coping with losses. I thought all the actors gave a good performance. The filming was not bad either, I thought it was enjoyable to watch. The storyline is entertaining enough to not get bored. It is kind of slow with not much action but that's why it's a drama and not an action movie. Nothing wrong with that if you like that genre of movie. I probably won't watch it a second time but I certainly don't regret watching it.