''The Family Tree'' is a 2011 American

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

film directed by

Vivi Friedman Vivi Friedman (May 20, 1967 – January 2, 2012) was a Finnish film director. She produced the majority of her work in the United States. During her career she worked on advertisements and short films and directed a feature-length film, ''The F ...

and written by Mark Lisson. The film stars

Dermot Mulroney Dermot Mulroney (born October 31, 1963) is an American actor. He is known for his roles in romantic comedy, western, and drama films. Appearing on screen since 1986, he is known for his work in various films such as '' Young Guns'' (1988), '' Stay ...

, Hope Davis, Chi McBride,

Max Thieriot Maximillion Drake Thieriot (; born October 14, 1988) is an American actor and director. He made his acting debut in the 2004 adventure comedy film ''Catch That Kid''. Thieriot has since appeared in the action comedy ''The Pacifier'' (2005), the ...

, Britt Robertson,

Selma Blair Selma Blair Beitner (born June 23, 1972) is an American actress. She played a number of roles in films and on television before obtaining recognition for her leading role in the film '' Brown's Requiem'' (1998). Her breakthrough came when she s ...

, and Christina Hendricks. It was given a

limited release __FORCETOC__ Limited theatrical release is a film distribution strategy of releasing a new film in a few theaters across a country, typically art house theaters in major metropolitan markets. Since 1994, a limited theatrical release in the Unite ...

in the United States by

Entertainment One Entertainment One Ltd., trading as eOne, is an American-owned Canadian multinational entertainment company. Based in Toronto, Ontario, the company is primarily involved in the acquisition, distribution, and production of films and television se ...

on August 26, 2011. The music for the film was written by Stacey Hersh. Additionally, Amy Powers and Megan Cavallari co-wrote a song for the film.

Plot

A mother and wife stricken with memory loss allows a dysfunctional family a second chance at harmony and happiness.

Cast

Release

acquired the North American rights to the film in June 2011, and set the release date of August 26, 2011. The film was given a limited release in the United States.

Reception

Box office

The film made a total of $6,035 from two theaters in the U.S. during its two-week run.

Critical response

The film was largely panned by film critics. On review aggregator website

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

the film received a rating of 10%, with a weighted average of 4.2/10, based on 20 reviews indicating "no consensus yet". Gary Goldstein of the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' wrote: "Director

's inability to successfully reconcile the film's duality undercuts an eclectic cast gamely committed to Mark Lisson's thematically ambitious, if scattered, script." Chuck Bowen of ''

Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York ...

'' also gave a negative review, writing: "Sadly, ''The Family Tree'' squanders all hepromise for the usual trite, bluntly written, and poorly staged testaments to love and family. Who needs that when you have a cast this game? A truly troubled family isn't, at the very least, this deadly dull."

Stephen Holden Stephen Holden (born July 18, 1941) is an American writer, poet, and music and film critic. Biography Holden earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Yale University in 1963. He worked as a photo editor, staff writer, and eventually be ...

of ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' heavily criticized the film, describing it as a "hyperactive screenplay by Mark Lisson that is so lacking in substance."

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Family Tree (2011 film) 2011 films American comedy-drama films 2011 comedy-drama films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films