REVIEW: Thanks for Sharing

6/10 - Candlelit romance and sex addiction

Based on the title, poster, and leads, I assumed this was a rom com about people in New York falling in love... which isn't wrong. But it's also about sex addiction. With some drugs and alcohol mixed in, too.

There is a bravery about this film that gives it some legs. I appreciate the originality injected into an otherwise cliche backdrop. (I am really starting to hate movies set in New York, there are other cities in the world, filmmakers. Maybe start checking them out.) Regardless, AA has developed its own sets of cliches. I thought none of them were used here, to my great relief.

The main story in Thanks for Sharing is about the relationship between Adam (Mark Ruffalo) and Phoebe (Gwyneth Paltrow) as they navigate their new relationship, having to overcome the hurdles of Adam's sex addiction. I don't know if I have an appreciation for the rom-com spin on an otherwise dramatic film. At the film's opening, Adam has been "clean" for 5 years, and hides his addiction from Phoebe who once dated an alcoholic and swore off dating another addict. Then they have beautiful charming dates. Perhaps Phoebe is too perfect for a film of this nature.

The cast really made this movie. During my brief Jobs review I said Josh Gad was great. In Thanks for Sharing he is outstanding. Truly, I found myself frustrated that his character wasn't the lead. He was both ambitious and self loathing. The best scene in this film is early in the movie with Josh Gad's character Neil is alone in his apartment, wanting to start the 12 steps but just spiraling out of control and into old habits. It's heart wrenching to watch. Tim Robbins and Patrick Fugit spend most of the film pushing and pulling at each other in a strained father-son relationship that's agonizing. Even Alecia Moore is able to get right to the core of hurt and pain.

As a character Adam is introduced as being vigilant, that he cannot go easy on himself. As if he is constantly aware of the monster under the surface. He lives a life of restraint and repetition. This would be extraordinarily fascinating if it was adequately displayed, but I don't get that feeling from Mark Ruffalo. His character is most frequently relaxed, joking around, comfortable, anything but ever-vigilant. Perhaps it's because his performance is overshadowed by Tim Robbins who play's Adam's mentor, and is the definition of a hard ass. I was desperate to see that struggle for self control that the other addict's showed. I wanted to see that intensity early in his relationship to show the depth of it's importance. It all went a little bit wishy washy because it was all too casual. It just stopped short of really hitting home.

Like the critical reviews, this film is a mixed bag. There are some brilliant performances and some mediocre ones. There are some scenes of incredible writing, and some that are tremendously boring. In retrospect it's a quality film that's worth watching all the way to the end, even if it's a bit long. I do have an appreciation for a film that explores some territory that isn't often shown in

IMDb - Thanks for Sharing (6.5)
Wikipedia - Thanks for Sharing
Rotten Tomatoes - Thanks for Sharing (49%)
Amazon.ca - Thanks for Sharing