Fragments movie review rotten tomatoes2/28/2024 Though this journey through the progress of a dysfunctional family has been done many times before and even frequently using the protagonist as a novelist about to open the secrets of the family's lives to the world, this story take some significant alternative routes that make it more tender. In addition to the fine work by Reynolds, Watson, Dafoe, Roberts, and all the other cast members, there is an important cameo for Ioan Gruffudd that opens the murk of the story well. In cleaning out Lisa's things Michael discovers some information that alters his view of his past, and those discoveries lead to a change in the way Michael views his father and Jane's children and most significantly the demons that have burdened him through his life. From here the film jumps back and forth between the childhood of Michael and Jane and the suffering and abuse Michael endured at the hands of his grotesquely diabolical father and the secrets of that failed family life are gradually exposed and the traumatic present. We gradually meet the family: Lisa's sister Jane (Emily Watson) is the mother of Christopher and his little sister and has always been the closest friend of Michael when they were children (as children, Michael is portrayed by Cayden Boyd and Jane by Hayden Panettiere ), At Lisa's funeral Michael's 'ex-wife', AA reformed Kelly (Carrie-Anne Moss) shows up to add to Michael's angst. But the celebration is altered by an accident: Charles swerved to not hit his nephew Christopher (Chase Ellison), hit a pole resulting in a crash that killed Lisa and injured Charles and leaves Christopher with a dark cloud of guilt that he caused the trauma. ![]() Michael has returned home for the college graduation of his sister Ryne (Shannon Lucio) as well as his mother's - Lisa (Julia Roberts) - deferred graduation. Successful Romance novelist Michael Taylor (Ryan Reynolds) has completed his latest novel, a work of serious memoir literature in which he has recounted his childhood in an attempt to free himself from the influence of his demonic father, English professor Charles Taylor (William Dafoe) who seriously abused Michael as a child and for whom he holds little emotion but disdain. Writer/Director Dennis Lee obviously had a fine story to share and a brilliant cast to offer it, but so much of it is missing that we are left frustrated. Pieces are simply missing: we are informed that the original version is 122 minutes while this version is only 89 minutes and it is likely that in the missing 33 minutes many of the unresolved and very confusing elements of time and place and character development and perplexing moments existed. The story seems as though someone threw the script up in the air with the fireflies in the garden (a quite beautiful moment in the film that suggest the night gardens of John Singer Sergent's 'Carnation Lily, Lily Rose'), shot it full of holes and then reassembled it the next groggy morning. Ignore the harsh reviews and give it a chance! 8/10įIREFLIES IN THE GARDEN is a perplexing movie. ![]() Sometimes you can be in the mood for a dark drama and some solid performances makes this one captivating. People are always clamouring for Hollywood to do something unique and I give a lot of credit to first time writer and director Dennis Lee for not making everything neat and tidy. Julia Roberts is good in her role though she isn't used all that much and sort of takes a more ceremonious role in the movie. Panettiere is much better as the younger Jane in the movie. Once you've accepted that Hayden Panettiere somehow grew up to look like Emily Watson.she also loses all her passion for the role. Emily Watson is sort of ho-hum compared to the rest of the cast. Obviously playing a villain type character is not new for Dafoe but his character is so pathetic, with so much depth, you will just despise him and beg for his redemption much like his family does. That father is played with excellent force by Willem Dafoe. Ryan Reynolds shines in his role as the grown up son who has many emotional problems because of a verbally abusive father. If you can handle a dark drama then you will be rewarded with some terrific performances. This is a very dark drama about a very messed up family and there isn't a happily ever after for them. Perhaps part of the issue that many see in this movie is that it is in no way packaged in a neat little box with sunshine and rainbows. That doesn't this cast and this film any less captivating. ![]() Many reviewers all say the same thing that movies like this are a dime a dozen and that might be true. The dysfunctional family story took three years to be released on DVD which is astounding considering the enormous strength of this cast. Fireflies in The Garden was panned by basically everyone.
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