“Men, Women, and Children” Gets #Real
By: Hunter Reis
“Men, Women, and Children” is Jason Reitman’s newest film with a social commentary. This time, Reitman, who has also directed “Juno”, “Thank You For Smoking”, and “Up In The Air” is focusing on the impact that technology has on relationships and how people interact with each other in the modern day world.
The all-star cast of “Men, Women, and Children”, which hits theaters October 17, includes Ansel Elgort, Adam Sandler, Jennifer Garner, Dean Norris, and Emma Thompson. Each of the characters, who portray a group of high school students and their parents, struggle with different ethical dilemmas that the presence of the internet and a vast access of technology can create.
As the disembodied voice of Emma Thompson helps guide viewers through the lack of a traditional narrative, each character goes through the courses of their daily lives, occasionally interacting with each other in-person or otherwise. Whether mundane, surveillant, or malnourished, all of the characters have unique problems of their own that they cannot seem to effectively communicate face to face with another human being.
This heartrendingly realistic film did an amazing job of capturing the problems that people – young and old – face in the modern world. While one girl obsesses over her weight and a website along the lines of “Pretty Girls Don’t Eat”, another obsesses over the online safety of her daughter to the point where she dedicates her life to making sure the fifteen year old does not send a message to a cute boy in her class.
The numerous subplots give viewers a lot to take in. Though the story line of Elgort and his classmate, portrayed by Kaitlyn Dever, is focused on a bit more than any other, each character has a lot to offer to the movie. Some subplots at first seem to exist for a sheer shock value with no true resolution, however this could be seen as another unfortunate message that Reitman is expressing about the modern world.
“Men, Women, and Children”, based on the novel by Chad Kultgen, is definitely not one to miss. Check it out for the social message that it is sending, and you’ll get hooked by seeing yourself in one, if not more, of the characters.