Chiến Thắng, Chiến Thắng

In an effort to clear out our DVR in time for a gazillion hours of Summer Olympics coming up, my husband and I went on an Indie film bender and watched about 10 flicks that we had recorded. Out of all of them, only two really stood out -- Win Win and In a Better World, a small Danish film. I had resisted seeing Win Win in the theater, honestly, because it didn't look like something I'd like based on the trailer. I thought it was going to be one of those feel-good, high school sports movies with the troubled kid and the coach who turns everything around and everyone goes home happy. This had many more layers to it, as all of the other positive reviews posted here will attest to.

My big takeaway from this film is that I really trust Paul Giamatti's choices of roles, and until he proves otherwise, I will see him in anything he does. I am also amazed at the range of characters he can play, and his ability to make a huge difference in a film even if the part he plays doesn't seem that significant in terms of screen time. Win Win was truly a vehicle for him (as the film Barney's Version was a year or so ago), and he carries it with no problem. Great supporting performances here by Amy Ryan, Bobby Cannavale (who I currently love hating in Nurse Jackie), Jeffrey Tambor, and newcomer Alex Schaffer as the kid.