Invaderbank The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

Michelle Ridley The movie is wonderful and true, an act of love in all its contradictions and complexity

Payno I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Cassandra Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.

vegfemnat The film is brilliant and a must see as other reviewers have already mentioned. The acting is masterclass and together with the brilliantly written dialogue paints the characters and their interactions in the fewest strokes possible. No wasted dialogues that bring nothing new to the story. I will not waste time mentioning how good Hal Holbrook is in the movie since every other reviewer has already done that.Instead I have to mention Ray McKinnon's performance as the troubled self-destructive alcoholic who s struggling to straighten himself out for the sake of his family. His portrayal both scares for being the dormant maniac that is at the edge of being unleashed at every stage and at the same time saddens for him being unable to reform himself due to a lot of external factors - him being unable to find a steady income , an old dude trying to snatch his family's home from him, his daughter dating a guy's son whom he detests for supposedly having stolen his grandfather's watch. The low lit sequences of him sitting in front of the television knee deep in self loathing and the weight of past regrets hanging over him is both scary and sad at the same time. At one point he tells his wife "People just can't understand that a guy can change". Ray McKinnon's Lonzo Choat is unforgettable.The only issue I had with the movie was with its messy third act. I mean I can understand the story treading a little offbeat path in its final stage to bring about a certain sense of realism and a non- cliché end. But it was too off putting for me. It was abrupt and doesn't give a sense of closure. I had already invested so much time in the Choat family and was at least hoping to see where things go for them. But the movie just completely disregards their plight at the end showing us nothing of them whatsoever. My heart was yearning to know what happens to them afterwards.But still a definite masterpiece with some brilliant shots and outstanding character studies. I'll definitely watch this a second time.

tjdercks Holbrooks acting was good ... but how this movie is rated higher than a 5 is beyond me?!?! This movie started out fine ... an old man does not like being in an old folks home, so he leaves and goes back to his farm. It turns out his son has rented it out, and never told him ... an interesting and believable start.Then it just turns weird ... the old man belittles the current Renter for being white trash. The Renter lets the old man spend the night, but tells him he has to leave in the morning. The old man does not leave, but instead goes and gets a dog, because he knows the Renter hates dog.The Renter does not immediately go to the police, or to his Landlord, to get this guy off the land he is legally renting ... but instead kills the dog? Maybe this is how tenant disputes are done in the South ... calling people White Trash and killing dogs ... but this makes no sense in my world.Oh ... and the old man shoots at the Renter, and gets him arrested. Then the old man decides to frame the Renter for arson, by torching the guest house he was squatting in ... but the Renter is a low life, welfare stealing, wife beating, alcoholic ... so who cares. Right?How is it the old man can trespass (for many days) ... shoot at a man, who is not threatening him ... break into the Renters home ... commit arson ... and in the end not be in jail?!?!Based on the Awards it won, I guess this type of drama plays well in the South. I found myself screaming at the screen how unbelievable this whole story was ... and how is it the police keep showing up, but the old man is left to stay?If you like movies about bitter, mean old men ... and delusional white trash idiots (he was going to be a farmer, but could barely mow the lawn; and had no money to buy the farm) ... that ends with everyone miserable ... then by all means, see this. I wish I turned it off after the first 20 minutes ... it is painful to watch!!!

nmhrestored Hal Holbrook (All the President's Men, Into the Wild) stars as octogenarian Abner Meecham, a widowed farmer who has been confined to a nursing home by his lawyer son (played by Walton Goggins). When Meecham becomes fed up with the dull, meaningless life among aging strangers, he returns to his farm, only to find that it has been rented to a man he despises: Lonzo Choat (Raymond McKinnon), a disreputable "white trash" resident of the town who has unrealistic dreams of buying the farm and starting a new life for his wife (Carrie Preston) and daughter (Mia Wasikowska). Choat refuses to vacate the farm, Meecham moves into the sharecroppers' shed, and a battle of wills ensues.Holbrook's performance is mesmerizing – the audience drawn into his battle for the farm he built and tended for half a century, and despite the problems his age presents in managing the land, we want to know that he will succeed in achieving his goal of spending his last years at home. While other characters in the film see Meecham as stubborn, bitter, mean and just a little crazy, Holbrook's portrayal helps us see him as clever, wily and all-too-human as he not only battles for his independence but lives with age-old regrets.Each of the films main characters demonstrate for the viewer what can happen when compromise and communication are eliminated as elements in achieving a solution. Meecham understandably wants to go home, but cannot acknowledge that there is physical risk and financial concern in such a move; Choat wants a new life, but cannot see that such a goal will require more determination and planning than he is able to achieve; and Paul has little sympathy for his father and is locked into a sensible, cost-efficient solution in tending to his aging parent. We watch and hope for cooperation to take place; we think of options that never present themselves, and we wonder if we could do better if faced with similar circumstances.Director Scott Teems' ability to draw the viewer into this southern drama of wills (based on a short story by William Gay) is enhanced through detailed cinematography – close-up shots of elements of decay on the farm make us long for a solution that will reverse the deterioration; interior shots are musty – one can almost smell the dust and wood-rot of aging structures; scenes filmed at night capture the isolation of a farm where threats can be acted upon without witness; and daylight scenes are rich with color and lush greenery, making us crave the beauty serenity of life in the farmlands of Tennessee. Character portrayals are supremely convincing, and while we are prone to side with Meecham, we can also understand the struggles and desires of those others who hope to start over or do what is best under difficult circumstances.The winner of more than 40 awards and massive critical acclaim, That Evening Sun is a treasure among independent films that will linger in the hearts and minds of viewing audiences long after the films' end.

Turfseer 2009 seems to be the year of the cantankerous curmudgeon as far as the movies are concerned. With Clint Eastwood's 'Gran Torino', Pixar's 'Up' and now first-time writer-director Scott Teem's 'That Evening Sun', the focus is on the octogenarian who refuses to be put 'out to pasture' and take 'one last fling' at life; to prove at the very least that even elderly people have some dignity in spite of the indifference of an uncaring, younger generation.Hal Holbrook lands the the plum part of Abner Meechum, the 80 year old country boy who flees the nursing home where he's been living for the past few months. It seems that his well-intentioned son Paul, a successful lawyer, convinced him to check in at the home after breaking his hip in a fall back at the family farm. Even Abner acknowledges that he would have died had his neighbor not checked in on him after the accident.But Abner still has some spunk left (unlike the tired and complacent denizens of the nursing home) and manages to make his way back to the family farm (aided by a sympathetic cab driver, initially hired by the nursing home to bring the curmudgeon back). When Abner does arrive home, he's shocked to learn that local ne'er-do-well Lonzo Choat, along with his wife and teenage daughter are living in his house and have a rent with an option to buy agreement with son Paul. Abner has known Choat for years and always regarded him as 'white trash'; we soon learn that Abner's evaluation of Choat is correct: he's been living on disability for years, is now broke and is an alcoholic to boot.Abner decides to move in to the sharecropper shack on the property. He adopts a dog from kindly neighbor Thurl which infuriates Choat, who can't stand the dog's continuous barking. The conflict escalates when Choat begins whipping his daughter Pamela's date after they have returned from a late night foray; the date manages to escape by driving off the farm in a car and Choat turns his wrath on his wife and daughter, whipping them with the garden hose until Abner puts an end to it by firing a shot in the air. Choat is further infuriated after Abner reports the incident to the local sheriff's office. Although Choat is brought in for questioning, he's ultimately released; it's obvious that the wife and daughter end up refusing to press charges.While there's tons of sympathy for feisty Abner, ultimately we're asked to view him as a victim. On the other hand, Choat is a despicable character—someone who beats his womenfolk and even stoops to killing Abner's dog as payback for being turned into the police. Paul victimizes poor Abner further by assuming that his father is nuts, disbelieving his claims that Choat was guilty of domestic violence (Paul has a deep chip on his shoulder—blaming his father for most of his problems and claiming that he also mistreated his now-deceased mother). This supposedly explains why he's not interested in taking any of his father's accusations seriously (you would think that a normal person would be curious as to why Abner has brought his pet to a taxidermist and had it stuffed, but Paul simply blurts out, "we're not going to go there"). Poor Abner—he's become a symbol of another 'marginalized' minority group—this time, the elderly! Another perplexing issue is Paul's willingness to rent the house to the Choats in the first place. Is he totally ignorant of the Choats' reputation in the community? Or does he hate his father so much that he totally rejects his father's opinion about them and willing to give Lonzo a break? Certainly the Choats have a 'history' in the community and Paul cannot be unaware of that. Why rent a house with someone who's on disability who can't really afford it? We never find out why Paul is so altruistic toward Lonzo; certainly he's made no inquiries as to Lonzo's true financial status (and this is a lawyer who's renting the house?). Paul could have made a few inquiries as to Lonzo's character, independent of his father's accusations (Why not talk to the family of Pamela's date?—he could have then ascertained that his father was telling the truth about Lonzo). Like Lonzo, Paul is simply not a well-developed enough character.Despite the imbalance in the narrative between the protagonist and antagonist, Holbrook holds his own amongst the great curmudgeons 'of our day'. It's a nuanced performance that mixes pathos with humor and occasionally offers some real surprises (I was truly thrown for a loop after seeing how Abner responds once Choat kills his pet). Mia Wasikowska is equally fine as the low-key teenager who has poor timing in trying to bond with Abner as she walks in on him at the very moment he's about to kill himself.Choat does save Abner's life but it isn't enough for us to change our minds about him. The ending to 'That Evening Sun' is ambiguous. Does Abner die at the end and meet his wife in heaven? Or does he recover from the burns he suffered in the fire and pay one last visit to the farm?—only to head out to the assisted living facility, suggested by his son. And what of the Choats? Does the son allow them to remain or are they history since they're broke and can't pay the rent?'That Evening Sun' has received a substantial number of positive accolades. Are they justified? If you look at the plot, in which the deck is stacked in favor of the protagonist—with the antagonists receiving short shrift, then I would be inclined to disagree with all the favorable reviews. But if you focus on Hal Holbrook's character and his performance, then I can understand why the film has garnered such a positive response.