You have the freak flag, you just don't fly it.

Spoiler Warning

The Family Stone caught me totally off guard. Everything I knew about this movie led me to expect a fun family oddball comedy. It is that, but it also has a very serious vein.

It turns out that the mother (Diane Keaton) has terminal cancer, and a bit part of the movie is about this being her last Christmas with her family. The movie pulls this off well, and skillfully mixes the comedic and serious themes. And for me, the serious stuff really snuck up on me. That's typically how good dramatic comedies do it (or comedic dramas, depending on the balance.) You're just along for the ride, having fun, and all of a sudden something serious happens and you realize you got attached to the characters and situation without knowing it. For me it was especially strong because the serious themes in this movie hit close to home.

I also thought Luke Wilson is as good as he gets in this movie. There was a lot of opportunity for him to ham it up, or try to hard to get laughs, but he never falls for it. He's always subdued, and hilarious.

I really liked this movie a lot, but be warned, it has some serious tones that the trailers and reviews won't warn you about.

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