Bill Borgens (Greg Kinnear) is an acclaimed author who still pines for his ex-wife Erica (Jennifer Connelly) who left him for another man. He has casual sex with Tricia (Kristen Bell). He pushes his kids to write. His daughter Samantha (Lily Collins) is publishing a book. She insists on avoiding true love until Louis (Logan Lerman) won't let her be. His son Rusty (Nat Wolff) falls for Kate (Liana Liberato) who has a drug problem and a boyfriend problem.
Everybody has their own storyline. Writer/director Josh Boone needs to decide what the movie should concentrate on. It's obvious that the mother is the key to the whole movie. Everybody should concentrate on that like a laser. With the mother being a central point, Connelly doesn't have enough screen time.
Lily Collins' story feels manufactured. The dialogue feels fake. I know it's fiction but it feels very writery. Her relationship with her mother lacks authenticity and Logan Lerman's mother is too symmetrical.
The father's story lacks heat. It does get to a good place but the Kristen Bell part doesn't have any tension. Their relationship has no danger and has no stakes. He is better alone waiting for his ex-wife. At least that has poetry. Instead of Bell's character, the story should develop more with his ex-wife's new husband.
The son's story has a couple of good scenes. It's essentially a coming-of-age story that could exist in any number of movies. While I love some of his turns, it has no direct connections to the mother. If this movie is about him, it would make some sense but this feels like a distraction.
Overall the movie feels too made-up. There are some good parts and some good scenes. I'm glad Josh Boone made a friend with Stephen King. He's obvious a fan and he's got a couple of movies from King material coming up.
