A married couple whose bond is built on a mutual love of alcohol gets their relationship put to the test when the wife decides to get sober.
Winstead is good, Paul is great and Ponsoldt's film is solid, even going so far as to deliver a genuinely poignant final scene.
Smashed is a fine little film, but I’m not convinced that it grabs.
The sharp ends in Smashed are here for all to see, and Ponsoldt never shies away from their spiky, thought-provoking effect. Yet he also finds grace and warmth in the story.
Largely meeting its modest goals, it’s a nuanced take on patterns of dependency, and the best chance yet for this feisty young actress [Mary Elizabeth Winstead] to prove her mettle.
Smashed makes sound and fury and all that those usually signify.
There are a few false notes, but James Ponsoldt's film about young recovering drinkers is powerfully acted.
Ponsoldt and his co-writer Susan Burke...pull off something very few films do nowadays – a good ending.
As welcome as its droll frankness may be, though, the film goes too far in its swerve away from melodrama. We see Winstead drinking, then we see her not drinking, but we're only just getting to the pressures brought on by this transition when Smashed suddenly jumps to its finale.
This is a quiet, nuanced, truthful film that avoids melodrama and grand confrontations.
A surprisingly authentic and heart-warming portrait of the struggles of overcoming alcoholism.
Edinburgh Filmhouse, Edinburgh from Friday February 15, 2013, until Thursday February 21, 2013. More info: www.filmhousecinema.com
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