Beginners

Beginners (2010) starring Ewan McGregor, Christopher Plummer, Melanie Laurent. Directed by Mike Mills. Oliver (McGregor) has an affair with Anna (Laurent) in 2003, but is haunted by memories of his recently deceased father, Hal (Plummer). The kicker is that Hal, who was married to Oliver's mother for 44 years, came out as gay five years ago, after the mother's death. The story is told in non-linear form, with the love affair with Anna taking place now, while Oliver's relationships with his father and mother are explored in flashbacks. We see that Oliver, confused by his parents' long and (he thinks) unhappy relationship, has trouble committing to Anna, who is beautiful and loves him. The movie is well crafted and the script is well written. The disc has subtitles for the hearing-impaired, but not closed captions. Grade: A-