Movie · 2013 · Comedy, Drama · 2h 1m · R · English
Curator score: 4.6/10 (160.5K ratings)
Misery loves family
Overview
An intense look at the lives of the strong-willed daughters of the Weston family, whose paths have diverged until a family crisis brings them back to the Midwest house they grew up in, and to the dysfunctional mother who raised them.
Ratings
Curator score: 4.6/10
IMDb: 7.2/10
Letterboxd: 3.54/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 67%
Metacritic: 58
TMDB: 6.9/10
Director
John Wells
Production
Jean Doumanian Productions, Smokehouse Pictures, Battle Mountain Films, Yucaipa Films, The Weinstein Company
Cast
Meryl Streep, Julia Roberts, Julianne Nicholson, Juliette Lewis, Ewan McGregor, Margo Martindale, Abigail Breslin, Chris Cooper, Dermot Mulroney, Benedict Cumberbatch, Misty Upham, Sam Shepard, Will Coffey, Newell Alexander, Jerry Stahl, Dale Dye, Ivan Allen, Arlin Miller, J. Alan Davidson, Michael Graham
Where to watch
Amazon Prime Video, Philo, Amazon Prime Video with Ads
Curator Review
Verdict
A sharp, actor-driven family meltdown with plenty of acidic dialogue and bruised emotions, but it can feel more like a filmed stage production than a fully cinematic drama. If you enjoy ensemble performances, toxic family dynamics, and bleakly funny domestic warfare, it delivers; if you want subtlety or visual invention, it may feel overcooked.
Best for
Viewers who like prestige ensemble dramas
Fans of dark family comedies and verbal sparring
People drawn to stage-play adaptations
Audiences who enjoy big, confrontational performances
Skip if
You dislike shrill, high-volume family conflict
You prefer understated realism over theatrical acting
You want a visually dynamic or formally adventurous film
You are sensitive to addiction, abuse, and incest-related material
Overview
August: Osage County is built to let great actors collide, and for long stretches that is exactly the appeal. The film turns a Midwestern family reunion into a pressure cooker of resentment, grief, and old humiliations, with almost every conversation threatening to become a full-scale emotional brawl. It has the blunt-force energy of a play that knows exactly where the knives are hidden.
Worth noting
The downside is that the adaptation rarely disguises its stage origins. John Wells keeps the camera mostly functional, which leaves the performances carrying nearly everything, for better and worse. When the cast is firing on all cylinders, the movie is wickedly entertaining; when the material starts stacking revelations and monologues, it can feel exhausting and a little self-conscious.
Bottom line
Still, as a showcase for actors tearing into ugly family truths, it’s hard to ignore. The film’s appeal is less about emotional comfort than catharsis through chaos: a dinner-table disaster movie where every line lands like a fresh insult. It’s messy, abrasive, and often funny in the darkest possible way.
Top Letterboxd reviews
Matt Singer (2★) · 827 likes
Not the best acting of 2013, but certainly the most.
Sam (3★) · 746 likes
EAT THE FISH, BITCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
cinéfila... 🕯️ (3★) · 702 likes
beloved character actress margo martindale steals the show by verbally ripping benedict cumberbatch a new one every time she's on screen
davidehrlich (3★) · 497 likes
as a movie, it's a damn fine play.
you hire a hack filmmaker to stand back and film the whole thing in medium shots / not get in the way of some serious oscar bait, and you get what you get. julianne nicholson is the sneaky mvp.
EAT YOUR FUCKING CATFISH, BITCH.
Wes (3★) · 467 likes
a big part of the gay Experience is enjoying an oscar bait movie with middle aged actresses screaming at each other