You know you're in good company with this cast - a review of The Company Men

It seems like I'm doing this more often lately, walking into movies blind based on a poster and a convienent time. I'm not complaining, I've just found it odd. So when you enter a movie like Company Men, you have certain expectations. By you, I of course mean me. But hey, I could be you. Ya neva' know. Comapny Men is a strange little event. It's good, don't get me wrong, but it was so quiet and so submerged by big ticket oscar winners like Social Network, King's Speech, and True Grit that no one really focused on it. For those of you who don't know, and frankly, why would you, this is a movie about our current economic hardship. It is about the second great recession and it is a fairly human and humbling experience. It follows, primarily, three men. Chris Cooper, Ben Afleck, and Tommy Lee Jones. The Majority of time is spent with Ben Afleck. Ben represents our everyman in this situation even though he isn't. He's a fairly well respected and high ranking employee so he is understanbly suprised when they let him go. He goes through the culture shock of not knowing what to do when you can't find a job. He is humbled by his experience. Next we have Tommy Lee Jones, now it is about an hour into the movie before both he and Chris Cooper loose their jobs. But once they do they each take a different path on figuring out what to do with their lives. Chris takes a darker path that i don't want to spoil. And Tommy takes a brighter path, using the events to empower himself. It is an uplifting movie about hope and about rising above your situation and not surendering to it. Then there is the supporting cast that just adds a great level of sub plots to the piece. Maria Bello, Craig T Nelson, and Kevin Costner all do their parts to match the bar set by our three leads. And really the acting here is what will keep you coming back. The story is fairly predictable and not at all unexpected response, a far better effort than Wall Street:we need more money, but it is this uninspired story that never allows it to leap above the pack. Further, the music doesn't stand out. So when your main draw is your actors, you've certainly got a fine piece. And in many ways this film succeeds for that matter, but in the same vein as the Expendables, it just doesn't go that extra mile to prove it's worth.
Overall this is a B experience. Certainly not a disapointment, just not as great as it could have been.