Dysfunctional Families
Perhaps because it's something nearly all of us can relate to (apart from The Bradys), messed-up families have always been a popular subject for filmmakers in all genres. Whether you're playing it for laughs ('Arrested Development', 'Go For Zucker'), drama ('Kramer vs Kramer', 'Nil By Mouth'), or thrills ('The Quiet Family', 'Olivier, Olivier') the family dynamic is a deep well of ready-made love/hate relationships, seething resentments and hidden secrets. What more could a filmmaker, or a film-watcher, ask for!
The Safety of Objects (2001)
6.6/10
Director: Rose Troche
Starring: Glenn Close, Dermot Mulroney, Jessica Campbell, Patricia Clarkson, Joshua Jackso...
Intricately woven study of family distress from director Rose Troche ("Go Fish") looks at the troubles encountered by four households in the same subu... Read more
The Savages (2007)
7.2/10
Director: Tamara Jenkins
Starring: Laura Linney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Philip Bosco, Peter Friedman, David Zayas
Laura Linney and Philip Seymour Hoffman play estranged siblings who are forced to deal with each other when their elderly father's dementia proves too... Read more
The Secret (2007)
6.4/10
Director: Vincent Perez
Starring: David Duchovny, Lili Taylor, Olivia Thirlby, Brendan Sexton III
Hannah (Lili Taylor) and Bill (David Duchovny) are married soul-mates with a teenage daughter, Sam (Olivia Thirlby); but when Hannah is killed in an a... Read more
The Seventh Continent (1989)
7.8/10
Director: Michael Haneke
Starring: Dieter Berner, Udo Samel, Leni Tanzer, Birgit Doll
A provocative and chilling depiction of a family who have lost contact with one another. Anna and Georg live with their daughter Eva, and while every... Read more
The Snapper (1993)
7.2/10
Director: Stephen Frears
Starring: Tina Kellegher, Ruth McCabe, Colm Meaney, Brendan Gleeson
A wonderful adaptation of Roddy Doyle's novel about a working-class Irish family and the teenage daughter who finds herself pregnant - a circumstance... Read more
The Sopranos: Season 1 (1999)
9.2/10
Director: Alan Taylor, Daniel Attias, Nick Gomez, David Chase, John Patterson, Allen Coulter, Lorraine Senna, Tim Van Patten, Andy Wolk, Matthew Penn, Frank Renzulli
Starring: James Gandolfini, Lorraine Bracco, Edie Falco, Michael Imperioli, Dominic Chiane...
Meet Tony Soprano: your average, middle-aged businessman. Tony's got a dutiful wife. A not-so-dutiful daughter. A son named Anthony Jr. A mother he's... Read more
The Sopranos: Season 2 (2000)
9.2/10
Starring: James Gandolfini, Lorraine Bracco, Edie Falco, Michael Imperioli, Dominic Chiane...
Tony Soprano's offbeat sister Janice turns up on his doorstep. Loose canon Jackie Aprile is released from prison and comes looking for a piece of the... Read more
The Sopranos: Season 4 (2002)
9.2/10
Director: Alan Taylor, Daniel Attias, Steve Buscemi, John Patterson, Allen Coulter, Tim Van Patten, Henry J Bronchtein, Jack Bender, James Hayman
Starring: James Gandolfini, Lorraine Bracco, Edie Falco, Michael Imperioli, Dominic Chiane...
It's tough times in Jersey for Tony Soprano. The sluggish economy hasn't been good for the family business. His wife Carmela is angling for more finan... Read more
The Sopranos: Season 5 (2004)
9.2/10
Director: Alan Taylor, Mike Figgis, Peter Bogdanovich, Steve Buscemi, Rodrigo Garcia, John Patterson, Allen Coulter, Tim Van Patten
Starring: James Gandolfini, Lorraine Bracco, Edie Falco, Michael Imperioli, Dominic Chiane...
His separation hasn't been working out. His nephew's fiancee has become a distraction. His paroled cousin is giving off bad vibes. His business rival... Read more
The Sopranos: Season 6, Part 1 (2006)
9.2/10
Starring: James Gandolfini, Edie Falco, Michael Imperioli, Lorraine Bracco, Steven Van Zan...
Things are really starting to fall apart as Gene decides he wants to leave the New Jersey mob for sunny Florida, the Feds are hot onTony's trail and V... Read more