Joy 2015
I didn’t know much about this movie when it came out. I don’t watch QVC or the Home Shopping Network, so I am not familiar with the real Joy this movie is based on. But I knew Jennifer Lawrence was nominated for Best Actress (again) for her portrayal and the Blu-ray was at Dollar Tree, so why not? I had enjoyed Silver Linings Playbook which was also directed by David O. Russell with most of the same cast. I think maybe because this movie tells about a real person’s life, they felt like they had to tell you more about her, plus introduce you to her messed up family. But the family is a little too messed up and they get worse, at least in the way they treat her. When her father says it was a mistake to let her think she should have dreams and could do anything she wanted, they just lost me, but that is near the end (he is a vile man throughout and yet she keeps going back to him). Basically she gets knocked around a lot and figures out a way to keep going, not just through willpower, but being smart. In the end you know she will be incredibly successful, so you are just kind of waiting through all the bad stuff to see how she makes it through. And the way she does is pretty impressive (if it is true, but who knows?). Wikipedia says the movie is based loosely on her life and I have to think they made too much of the challenges. Honestly the mop didn’t seem that amazing to me and of course I can’t stand shopping channels, so I didn’t really care for any of that. The harsh flat side characters really don’t serve the story very well, but it is still a pretty good story and the ending makes up for a lot, but I still can’t give it more than a B-.
Written: 26 Dec 2018
Owned on: Blu-ray, Digital