OK from now on these reviews are going to be a tad different instead of long rambling paragraphs I'm going to have headings for plot, positives and negatives before giving my overall score and we'll start with Take This Waltz
Plot: Michelle Williams plays Margot a disenfranchised writer who currently makes end's meat writing articles for a travel website however life turns around for her when she meets Luke Kirby's charming artist Daniel. The only problem is that Margot is married to the dependable Lou, played by Seth Rogen, whose latest project is to write a book of ways that people can cook chicken. Margot tries to keep her feelings for Daniel underwraps however this easier said than done when he lives on the same street as her and becomes near impossible when Lou starts inviting him around. As well as losing her husband, if Margot does end up with Daniel she'll lose her best friend in Lou's recovering alcoholic sister Geraldine played by Sarah Silverman. In the end Margot makes her choice but in the final few scenes it seems that her decision may not have been the best one.
Positives: Anybody who saw her debut feature Away from Her knows that Sarah Polley has a great visual flair and this film demonstrates it with its stark colour. Though Michelle Williams is usually glum here she at least gets to crack a smile and demonstrate a little more humour than she got to in say Blue Valentine or Meek's Cutoff. Seth Rogen is no stranger to drama but here he plays it completely straight and is every inch the good guy as he cooks chicken for his family and generally puts in an amiable yet believable performance. The revelation here though is Sarah Silverman who is absolutely fantastic in her role as the sarcastic yet damaged Geraldine who often acts as Margot's confident but also has her own issues to deal with. I also think that the situations that Polley has created are believable with the couple who were married young no longer having that spark so the wife looks elsewhere. Rogen and Williams' chemistry is great and I really bought into their relationship to the extent that I didn't want it to end.
Negatives: It seems that Polley didn't think that her story had enough going for it so had to add plenty of kooky elements from the fact Daniel drives a rickshaw round the neighbourhood to the sight of Margot and Geraldine working out with the old women in the pool. There is also an incredibly odd sex scene towards the end of the film which is incredibly arty and for me feels mildly pretentious. I also wasn't a fan of Daniel nor the performance of Luke Kirby as he tried to steal Margot away from her perfectly nice husband I really wondered what she saw in this slightly creepy guy other than he was artistic.
Verdict: Despite being overly kooky at times it's the performances from Rogen, Williams and especially Silerman that make Take this Waltz what it is coupled with a mostly believable script as well as the director's likeable style I will give this one 7.5/10
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