Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I am a big Jeff Bridges fan and appreciate everything he has done and such, but I didn't feel grabbed by this one at all. Not that there were horrible performances or bad film making, it just had a slew of little things peppered throughout that made me not give this the above average recommendation.
The story follows a minor league ball player (Timberlake) suffering a slump, who has to get his famous big league dad (Bridges) to make a final visit to his estranged and dying ex-wife. Through some poorly staged events, they have to make it a road trip together across several states (instead of flying) to make this union happen. The scenery is quite beautiful in some of the sequences, and it even upstages some of the sparse dialogue as the long-parted kin find a way to re-connect. Kate Mara is the tag-along friend who offers the love interest of Timberlake, but the chemistry never materializes in ways it should have.
The Blu quality is average to below average, with the strong showing being the opening aerial shot of the baseball game (must have used a different camera - they usually seem to in those kinds of scenes). Some of the color/contrasts in the open road shots shine nicely, but the amount of indoor and dark sequences show several weaknesses. The 5.1 is uneventful, and the only supplement offers little insight other than some typical fluff. Did not get to the commentary as I could not venture sitting through this twice. Three for the film content and Mr. Bridges (the supporting cast of Steenburgen and Harry Dean Stanton are not present enough to warrant dissecting their screen time). I love road films so maybe this will give you some light entertainment on a slow night.
Click Here to see more reviews about: The Open Road (2009)
In this heartwarming comedy, minor leaguer Carlton Garrett (Justin Timberlake) takes an unexpected road trip to track down his estranged father, legendary baseball player Kyle Garrett (Jeff Bridges) when Carlton's mother (Mary Steenburgen) becomes sick.Knowing his charming yet painfully immature dad's likelihood to disappoint, Carlton enlists his on-again-off-again girlfriend Lucy (Kate Mara) for emotional support.Once reunited, Carlton struggles to deal with the series of misadventures caused by his father's antics, including missed flights, car trouble and bathroom brawls. Years of miscommunication, frustration and comically awkward attempts at bonding come to a head as the mismatched trio make their way from Ohio back home to Houston to reunite the family.
