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Movie Overview
Cast
• Katie Holmes
• Patricia Clarkson
• Oliver Platt
Director
• Peter Hedges
MPAA Rating
PG-13 - language, sensuality, drug content, and images of nudity
Pieces of April (2003)

REVIEWS
NEWS
INTERVIEWS OTHER
OFCS Rating: 87% Fresh
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3/4
"An affectionate holiday movie with a lot of spirit and heart, but one that might have been much better if not for the fact that the visuals almost annihilate the narrative."  Cinemaphile.org  David Keyes

2.5/4
"An emotionally powerful ending aside, Pieces of April should have been a warm and fuzzy Thanksgiving treat. Instead, it's mostly just fuzzy."  Movie Boeuf  David N. Butterworth

2.5/4
"...a typically quirky independent comedy..."  Reel Film Reviews  David Nusair

B-
"Everything worked out a little too neatly for this farce to convince as drama."  Ozus' World Movie Reviews  Dennis Schwartz

2.5/4
"Plays like a sitcom that just so happens to feature characters infinitely more real and complex than the genre usually permits...[Katie Holmes] is a joy to watch."  TheMovieBoy.com  Dustin Putman

1.5/4
"Far stranger than the unnecessary air of mystery and constant telegraphing going on here is how Hedges turns disease and race into a running joke."  Slant Magazine  Ed Gonzalez

3/5
"Es una pequeña peliculita, pero con una sensibilidad enorme."  Uruguay Total  Enrique Buchichio

B+
"What a pleasant and touching little movie this is."  EricDSnider.com  Eric D. Snider

3.5/4
"That Hedges is able to weave all the strands of humor, regret, anger and love into a paltry 80 minutes is quite an achievement."  eFilmCritic.com  Erik Childress

C+
"Pieces of April looks like it is charming most of those who see it, but I was irritated by its artifice."  Film Blather  Eugene Novikov

3/4
"...a solid and quirky dysfunctional family comedy-drama...sharply touching and carries the appropriate tone of wit and genuine forethought to heighten its redemptive vibes."  Movie Eye  Frank Ochieng

B-
"What raises 'Pieces of April' above its flaws is the emotional investment that Hedges and his cast have made in it."  One Guy's Opinion  Frank Swietek

"Pieces of April revolves around a Thanksgiving dinner and draws out all our mixed feelings about families, memories, nasty grievances and moments of deep gratitude."  Spirituality and Practice  Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat

3/4
"The ending of Pieces of April is conventional, but satisfying, and there's enough delightful weirdness up to the final moments that it's hard to fault Hedges for taking the easy way out."  ReelViews  James Berardinelli

4/4
"A small independent with a big heart."  Palo Alto Weekly  Jeanne Aufmuth

7/10
"Most of the writing is effectively funny, and Clarkson's performance gives the story's dramatic undercurrent some much needed weight."  Window to the Movies  Jeffrey Chen

51/100
"The sum of April's obvious flaws can't undo its sincerity."  MovieMartyr.com  Jeremy Heilman

8/10
"Like School of Rock, April isn't so much about telling a new story as it is about taking an old story and breathing some fresh air into it."  Planet Sick-Boy  Jon Popick

3
"..I can’t stress enough the grace and beauty of Peter Hedges’ haunting picture .."  Bangitout.com  Jordan Hiller

2.75/5
"[Katie] Holmes doesn’t so much react as put on an appropriate expression."  Film-Forward.com  Kent Turner

B+
"A holiday classic for the art house crowd"  Reeling Reviews  Laura Clifford

3/4
"Great performances of well observed characters lift the movie above its one-note ending"  Movie Habit  Marty Mapes

"Katie Holmes... gives her most subtle and audacious performance yet..."  Flick Filosopher  MaryAnn Johanson

3/5
"A reasonably fun and poignant family story ... and an ending that almost successfully wrapped everything up in a neat holiday bow."  Goatdog's Movies  Michael W. Phillips, Jr.

3/4
"[The masterstroke is] keeping the family apart for most of the movie and using character analysis as a way of suggesting the dysfunction."  Aisle Seat  Mike McGranaghan

A-
"Moments that are real and touching and meaningful."  Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies  Nell Minow

4.5/5
"[Director Peter] Hedges keeps it laceratingly real, with bulls-eye performances from talented actors who are all used to much bigger budgets."  Shadows on the Wall  Rich Cline

B+
"The best movie about Thanksgiving in a long time, maybe ever."  Laramie Movie Scope  Robert Roten

B
"“Pieces of April” too easily wraps up the lifelong conflict between Joy and April in the end, but there is a good-natured feel that makes it an amiable little holiday film."  Reeling Reviews  Robin Clifford

B-
"You may leave on a high note, but you’ll quickly remember how long it took you to reach that pinnacle"  Eclipse Magazine  Sean O'Connell

"Hedges peppers it with enough wonderful moments that you can't help warming up to it."  Salon.com  Stephanie Zacharek

B+
"The moment I realized the movie was working for me was when I realized that I was rooting for it to work, just as I was rooting for young April… a feel-good parable about taking steps in the right direction."  Decent Films Guide  Steven D. Greydanus

3/4
"Consistently engaging and intelligent."  Reel.com  Timothy Knight

2/4
"A white fantasy of helpful, unflaggingly one-dimensional minorities."  Film Freak Central  Walter Chaw

3.5/4
"A series of terrific performances (led by the amazing Patricia Clarkson) make this unusual Thanksgiving comedy a feast for the mind."  Oscar Guy  Wesley Lovell

"Click here to see review"  Wolf Entertainment Guide  William Wolf

7/10
Read review  Movie Gazette  Anton Bitel

D+
Read review  FilmJerk.com  Brian Orndorf

6/10
Read review  JoBlo's Movie Emporium  JoBlo

7/10
Read review  www.susangranger.com  Susan Granger

Read review  PopMatters  Cynthia Fuchs

Read review  BlackFilm.com  Wilson Morales
OFCS Rating: 87% Fresh
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