REEL FANS:B average for 1st of film fest

Daily Pilot staffer Sue Thoensen went to Edwards Big Newport on opening night of the Newport Beach Film Festival to get moviegoers’ opinions of “Beautiful Ohio,” which stars William Hurt, Rita Wilson and Michelle Trachtenberg. Actor Chad Lowe directed.

Simon (Hurt) and Judith (Wilson) Messerman are raising their two teenage sons in suburban Cleveland in the 1970s, exposing them to literature, music, mom’s home cooking and the dynamics of a dysfunctional family.

Clive (David Call) is a quirky math genius, William (Brett Davern) struggles to find his own identity in the shadow of his older brother’s achievements, and Clive’s girlfriend, Sandra (Trachtenberg), complicates all their lives when she brings her free-spirited personality into the family mix.

“I enjoyed the movie. I thought it started a little slow, but I enjoyed the character studies it provided. I thought it did an excellent [job] of looking at the emptiness of several people’s lives, and the connections they struggled with, and the relationships between all of the family members. I think Brett Davern did an excellent job — the intensity of his experiences was pretty amazing.”

Mark Jablonski

Brea

“I really enjoyed the film. I thought the beginning was stark, and in my impression, I think there was a sense of worshipping of intellectualism, and that was how this family defined themselves. The heart of the family was the character of William, played by Brett Davern, and I thought that all of the actors did a fabulous job. I was very moved by the ending, because with the family drama there was a lack of intimacy, and I saw William’s role [as being] the joy in the family. He kept trying so hard, and I really connected with him trying to be somebody in that family.”

Kris Jablonski

Brea

“The movie was eerily disturbing but enjoyable. It’s the type of movie you have to think about. It started slow, but had a great ending that I think brought the whole movie together. I don’t think I would have liked the movie nearly as much if it hadn’t ended the way it did. I think the acting was excellent — the disturbed math genius [Call] did a great job.”

Mel Waite

San Clemente

“T he movie was interesting. I found it a little too deep for me, a little too depressing. It was repetitious and long, and there wasn’t enough story for me. The acting was fabulous. I would say the last half an hour kind of brought it to a different dimension, which brought the beginning of the movie more together, but I was a little bored until I got toward the end. [That’s when] it all came together and I realized what the story meant.”

Kathy Tzen

Laguna Hills

“I thought the movie was very interesting, and some of the developments were unexpected. It’s the story of a lovely, dysfunctional family, and it was very touching at the end. The ending gave me a sense of hope for the family, a feeling that the issues had come full circle, and without it, I don’t think the movie would have been complete. It was very evenly paced, and I liked that the character development was nice and slow. I’ve always loved William Hurt, and the actor that played the young brother was wonderful.”

Amy Stoody

Laguna Hills