Smashed (2012)

Smashed (2012) The first film with Mary Elizabeth Winstead & Aaron Paul. They later played together again in The Parts You Lose (2019).

You could say that this film is banal and uninteresting… especially if you have no sensibility!
But, in reality, it’s typically the kind of film you don’t expect much from and which turns out to be a real pleasant surprise.

The subject is already a rare and serious one: alcoholism among young people. And it’s handled with admirable precision and subtlety!

In ‘Smashed’, there’s no mawkishness, no sentimentality, no big fights or speeches to bring tears to the eyes or to educate the viewer. No, just a simple, beautiful relationship blighted by the festive alcoholism that so many people have experienced. The trials and tribulations of the characters, the laughter, the tears, the decline, the realisation, it’s all spot on.

Not many films deal seriously with alcoholism among young people, so that’s one aspect that convinced me to see this little independent film.

Aaron Paul is best known for Breaking Bad. He’s also in this film in a role that has some similarities, it seems to me. Quite an actor! Probably the best in the film.

Nick Offerman is, apparently, rarely in serious roles. So it’s surprising to see him like this. Nice!

Octavia Spencer is insufferable but, thankfully, not very present. I don’t know if it’s her character or the actress, as I don’t know her.

And what about the lead actress?
She was a real revelation right from the start. Her performance is remarkable in every way, and she manages to arouse emotions in me that don’t come so easily. Mary Elizabeth Winstead has always been a name to remember!

We knew she was going to be promising, especially if she continued to make such intelligent film choices. It was the start of a great career. Unfortunately, her last three films (including ‘Kate’) have been pretty disastrous. Perhaps that’s why she’s turned even more to series. After all, she had already made some (The Retuned, Braindead), but they didn’t achieve the success they deserved.

In this film, she plays the schoolteacher we all wish we had, the teacher we dream of for our children… apart from her addiction problem, of course!