Diminished Capacity

I found this DVD at a garage sale and I was shocked that I never heard anything about this movie. A killer cast with horrible cover art. The story was wonderfully quirky. I cared for the characters and was fascinated by the plot complications. There was a nice combination of humor and sadness. The story of country folks trying to survive in the big city of Chicago was a nice touch. I loved the real Cubs footage and could feel the pain of some of the fans portrayed in the film. I once loved baseball and I would imagine any true fan would get a kick out of the real baseball references throughout the film. Overall a satisfying surprise

I saw this film last night and I really enjoyed it. It showcased some human elements that have been forgotten by Hollywood. Sense of family, memories and bonds that are easily dismissed in today's world. Wonderful performances by the whole cast, especially Alan Alda and Matthew Broderick. Two comedic legends, but what touched me was the compassion that both their characters showed for each other. It was a comedy but personally, I found the sweetness more compelling than the comedy. I would recommend it for people who prefer dialogue and listening to the characters to the standard big noise movies that seem to dominate the film world.

Weird feeling all through this one. The story just never hits and we keep wanting for things to move forward. Some funny moments though and a lot of love for baaeball which you can't complain about.

Good watchable indy movie in the vein of "Little Miss Sunshine". Liked the ensemble of quirky characters with their mental and other problems. Alan Alda is quite good as the elderly man with Diminished Capacity with a valuable baseball card to sell. His mental problems aren't overdone. His nephew trying to help is played by the quite well cast Matthew Broderick though he is a bit puffy looking. Virginia Madsen looks quite pretty with her lovely face. She is a bit broad in the mid section. Bobby Cannavale is quite good in his intense over the top role. It's not one to watch more than once like Sunshine or Sideways, but it's worth one watch.

Maybe Diminished Capacity isn't "all that and a bag of chips," as a friend of mine is fond of saying. But I'll tell you what, it's pretty funny. I think I heard more laughing than anything I've seen at Sundance since Napoleon Dynamite and Little Miss Sunshine. That bodes well for the box office prospects of this film.

Alan Alda gives a terrific performance as Rollie Zerb, a small-town Missouri old-timer with Alzheimer's, who lives with his sister (and some hilarious but unidentified guy named Wendell in a trailer by the house). They are visited by Cooper (Matthew Broderick), who arrives at his mother's request to help talk Uncle Rollie into a nursing home. Cooper has mental problems of his own, due to a recent concussion. While back in town, he runs into Charlotte (Virginia Madsen), his high school sweetheart who is recently divorced from the town mayor. And somehow Rollie, Cooper, Charlotte and her son wind up heading to Chicago, where they are going to try to sell Uncle Rollie's rare baseball card of Frank Schulte, from the 1908 Chicago Cubs (the last Cubbies team to win the World Series!).

Broderick is solid, in his awkward, understated way. Madsen is the straight woman. But Alan Alda makes the movie as Uncle Rollie, and dominates the screen in almost every scene. And yes, if you squint you'll see shades of Hawkeye Pierce, but his Rollie character is a complete departure from anything he has done in the past, and probably his best comedic performance since MASH.

The script is very well-written, if a bit awkward at parts, and under the direction of veteran actor Terry Kinney, the action moves along briskly. There is probably more tension than there needs to be, which doesn't really fit. But when you're not wincing, you're generally laughing. There are some hilarious lines, and a plenty of feel-good vibe. Everyone will like this movie.

Sundance Moment: Broderick was much better on stage than I would have expected. He was there with his wife, Sarah Jessica Parker, whose movie Smart People had premiered at Sundance the night before. Alan Alda was charming as well. Bobby Canavale was in two movies playing at Sundance this year, the other being The Merry Gentleman.