Ivy, however, is rightly suspicious of this prodigal son, and says Holly is trying too hard. Ben plays noisily with his half-siblings but too noisily an edge of anxious . While the director meant to keep the finale subtle, we conclude that Ben is alive. He blames himself for someone attempting to hurt his family. You can learn to parallel park there, you can make out with your high school boyfriend . The elder Hedges needs to make amends. SALON is registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office as a trademark of Salon.com, LLC. A young man twitches and complains of being sick as he pleads for money so he can buy drugs. Ben assures his mother that his sponsor had OK'd his return. Newton is quite good, too, as the familys voice of reason. Now, with Ben is Back, director Peter Hedges has created something a little bit different: a half-and-half movie with plenty of standard-issue addiction drama courtesy of Julia Roberts as a suburban mum trying to keep her 19-year-old son off opioids at Christmas.But other scenes are directed with the pure . for language throughout and some drug use. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. He has a secret. Pockets. This is humiliating. No, this is love. Hollys oblivious. Free to go. You didnt check my shoes. Then Holly becomes concerned. A young man chases another young man out of a diner, he shoves him against a wall and into a pile of garbage bags and the young man on the ground gets up and punches the other young man in the face and then runs away. And the later scenes reveal that Ben has taken the drug nonetheless. They end up at the home of Maggies father Bens ex-girlfriend, who died from a presumed drug overdose. Later still, Dolly and Ben go garment shopping, and seeing Ben in possession of the drug, the guards throw them out of the mall. See ratings & reviews at Critics.com. A young man says, "You're still scared of me," to his family. Theres this dangerous something coursing through him. Christmas can be emotionally fraught no matter who you are or what family you grew up in, but it can be especially tricky when youre an addict, and even more so when you have a tenuous grasp on your recovery. Ben is back! (3,433) 6.7 1 h 43 min 2018 X-Ray HDR UHD R. Julia Roberts delivers a riveting performance as a mother swept into a race against time after her troubled 19-year-old son (Lucas Hedges) returns home for Christmasand suddenly disappears. But even a scene set the safe space of a 12-step meeting, where Ben cracks jokes and tries to earn sympathy,comes off as disingenuous. Helmed by Peter Hedges, the 2018 drama Ben Is Back is a refreshing and nuanced addiction movie about drugs and how they affect society. He wisely lets his actors act, giving them space to indicate so much in just a meaningful look. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. His stepfather, Neal (Courtney B. Vance), wonders how many more chances Ben deserves, noting that a young black man in his circumstances would not have had as many. If the thought has indeed crossed your mind, allow us to enlighten you. He leaves Ponce in the car with a note asking whoever finds it to call his mom. "ben is back" is filled with harshly poignant scenes, e.g., when holly goes cold at the very sight of the doctor who prescribed heavy doses of painkillers for ben when her son was 14, or when holly has a harrowing encounter with a childhood friend of ben's who has been ravaged by addiction and cries out, "i changed your diapers," and wonders how A young man says that his mother found him upside down on the stairs with a needle in his arm and that his dog was trying to keep him awake. Additional filming went underway at the Super Seven convenience store, located at 75 Orange Turnpike in Sloatsburg. Ben tries to buy his dog back, but Clayton says Ben must do a drug run for him. Gary M. Kramer is a writer and film critic based in Philadelphia. A drug addicted teenage boy shows up unexpectedly at his family's home on Christmas Eve. human shock collars for sale vampire movies 1940s movie themed team names. Dolly heads to a store to change the kit since it has expired, but they do not deal with such medications. And you will be helping support our website & our efforts. Ben Is Back is a film about addiction-what it's like to be a recovering addict, and what it's like to love one. However, Mr. Richmond did not abduct Ponce, making Holly and Ben move on to the next house. As per sources, a few scenes were even lensed at a property on Johnsontown Road, simply known as The Farm. They search for Ponce together to no avail. And Ben has a secret. [Peter and Lucas Hedges never meant to make a movie together.]. Hedges is as excellent as he was in "Manchester By the Sea," but it's fair to say the movie belongs to Roberts. Symmetry opens the film. She tracks down Spencer, giving him drugs she had confiscated from Ben earlier, in exchange for him telling her where he might be. While eating at a diner, Ben tells Holly that he got a local girl, Maggie, hooked on drugs and is responsible for her death. His survivors guilt never feels as palpable as her mothers (Rachel Bay Jones) grief. Clayton, a local gang leader for whom Ben worked, sent men to break into the Burns residence. Acclaimed director Peter Hedges ('Dan In Real Life') reared the 2018 familial micro-drama movie 'Ben Is Back' starring his son Lucas Hedges (' Manchester by the Sea '). After pressure from her husband, she insists she will stick to Ben for the next 24 hours. Admittedly, you may feel like youve had your fill of troubled rich white guys with all their second chances and five-star rehab opportunities. Ben is Back: Teaser Trailer 1 0:55 Added: August 24, 2018. After mall PDA, AJ Raval insists Aljur Abrenica just . FILTER by RATINGS Holly has two kids with her second husband ( Courtney B. Vance) in addition to Ben and his younger sister, Ivy ( Kathryn Newton ), from her first. - Opioid addiction affects not only the addict but the whole family. Before that, she was the film critic for The Associated Press for nearly 15 years and co-hosted the public television series "Ebert Presents At the Movies" opposite Ignatiy Vishnevetsky, with Roger Ebert serving as managing editor. Ben has something hes not saying. Ben Is Back shifts into gear once mom and son leave the house for a trip to the mall. The MPAA rating has been assigned for language throughout and some drug use. The Kids-In-Mind.com evaluation includes a physical altercation that ends with a punch in the face, references to sex in exchange for drugs, opioid addiction and its effects on family and loved ones, discussions of the death of people addicted to opioids and rehab, and over 30 F-words. Lucas Hedges plays the titular Ben, a recovering heroin addict, and Julia Roberts is Ben's loving mom. Vance, as the skeptical stepdad, takes a thinly-written role and makes it meatier. A young man seems nervous when he sees another young man in a shopping mall. And Julias switch from happy mother shopping with her son to concerned and panicked mother is Mom, it was a joke. so powerful. Excuse me can I get a key to this door, please? This scene is a microcosm for the film that in Holly, at the beginning, you see the hope she has that this is going to be a fun thing. Ben Is Back also traverses the same territory as the recent, better drama, Beautiful Boy, about a young mans addiction and the impact it had on his father and family. And then he reminds her, no, she didnt check everything. These scenes are the most engaging, but that may be because they are action-oriented, and the characters have finally stopped freakin talking about their problems. Ben completes the mission and gets Ponce back, but Clayton also gives him some drugs in return. His mother Holly (Roberts) beams as only Julia Roberts can beam, full megawatt dazzle delighted to see him. Not a burglar it turns out but Ben (played by the directors son Lucas Hedges), the familys oldest kid, who is back from rehab unexpectedly for the holidays. Hollys parental crisis is also a social crisis. Ben and Holly talk and talk trying to gain understanding of the situation. Telling her she does not know the real "him," Ben reveals that his sponsor told him not to return home and that he did not get the drugs Holly found from a girl at the support group but rather hidden in the attic above his younger siblings' bedroom. Review: 'Ben Is Back' Takes A Wrong Turn Along The Way The first half is a tense, painfully real family drama about the lingering toll of opioid addiction; the second half lurches into thriller . Photograph: Doane Gregory/AP These colors don't run. Know when new reviews are published We will never sell or share your email address with anybody and you can unsubscribe at any time, We will never sell or share your email address with anybody and you can unsubscribe at any time, Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody. Surprises? Read More: Ben Is Back Ending, Explained: Is Ben Dead or Alive? (She and Hedges also played siblings last year in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.) Ivy has seen too much, so she sees through everyones lieseven the well-intentioned ones from her mom. [12], According to the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 81% of critics have given the film a positive review based on 221 reviews, with an average rating of 6.9/10. Although Ben left Ponce in the car outside, Dolly finds Ponce in the place. Lost and dejected, Dolly calls Neal, illustrates the situation, and goes to the police station to file a diary. She knows that Ben is in another town, but Dolly lies that they split up to cover more ground. The journey of Ben and Dolly to find the family canine, Ponce, begins at the house of Mr. Richmond, the history teacher. And she thinks shes covered all the tracks. A young man says, "The last time I didn't help someone, they died." Director Peter Hedges Writer Peter Hedges Stars Julia Roberts Lucas Hedges Courtney B. Vance See production, box office & company info Watch on HBO Max with subscription More watch options Add to Watchlist 145 User reviews 162 Critic reviews 66 Metascore Awards Theyve just come from a 12-step meeting. The suspense is generated by a deceptively simple question, one that haunts most stories of addiction: Will Ben use again? And then she checks him because she has concerns. Ben, an addict 77 days sober arrives back at the family home unexpectedly. You can feel every conflicting emotion shes experiencing as she pulls up to the familys house with her other kids in tow and is stunned at the sight of her eldest, a hoodied 19-year-old standing awkwardly in the driveway. During the 24 hours that may change their lives forever, Holly must do everything in her power to avoid the family's downfall.Watch More: Coming Soon to Theaters: http://bit.ly/2mkFBqr Movie Clips: http://bit.ly/2FrP8VL Movie Trailers: http://bit.ly/2GlOAkMFuel Your Movie Obsession: Subscribe to COMING SOON: http://bit.ly/2CMX5D1 Watch Movieclips ORIGINALS: http://bit.ly/2D3sipV Like us on FACEBOOK: http://bit.ly/2DikvkY Follow us on TWITTER: http://bit.ly/2mgkaHb Follow us on INSTAGRAM: http://bit.ly/2mg0VNUThe Fandango MOVIECLIPS COMING SOON channel is home to all the movie clips, trailers, behind the scenes videos, and more from the best upcoming movies. And some drug use station to file a diary Ben worked, sent men break... 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