It's a movie for everyone whose life has been thrown off-course, out of whack, or simply not turned out the way they planned it. In other words, it's a movie for everyone, period. Set in suburban Long Island in the summer of 2002, with the psychic wounds of 9/11 still fresh, A Little Help is a story that takes a comic, searching and profoundly empathetic look at a few pivotal months in the life of dental hygienist Laura Pehlke (Jenna Fischer)-an ordinary woman whose life suddenly flies off the rails-and her heroic efforts to re-establish a sense of security and normalcy for herself and her son.
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An enjoyable, down to earth movie about real family relationships and what people do to love and protect their loved ones. It is great to see the filmmaker had the courage to make a movie about real life relationships in all their complexity. This isn't the best movie you will see all year but it will make you think and reflect on your own life and family dynamics. I hope people don't see the score of 5.7 out of ten and discount this little gem. The acting is very good especially the scenes between the main character and her son. The story flows along nicely and the music score is terrific. To top it all off there is even a nice character arc at the end. This movie may not be everyone's cup of tea but it in no way deserves some of the bad reviews on this site.
Ms. Fischer is, in an extremely limited way, talented. Her deadpan served "The Office" well. However, in a dramedy requiring acting chops, such as "A Little Help," she falls flat on her cutish face.Striving for slice-of-life befouled in in a web of lies, Ms. Fischer's flat affect singular expression spoils the fun. She's a TV actress, period. (See also "Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story" for that same expressionless facade.) It's not so much Ms. Fischer phones in her performance, she doesn't even have a phone. Drunk? Same as sober. Angry? Same as calm except something is thrown. Someone should really tell her as she seems clueless (as to why more film roles aren't offered).That said (and it's plenty when the lead can't pull off a simple role - this isn't Shakespeare), the rest of the cast looks embarrassed and bored. And why not. They're mostly hacks (Leibman and O'Donnell??) who never really had great careers. They were bought on the cheap for this poorly written Indie flop. Kim Coates buoys the proceedings and stands out, but it ain't sayin' much when you're surrounded by talentless actors."A Little Help" is unwatchable. Save your time and instead watch paint drying. The entertainment value is identical.
I like Jenna Fischer. Everybody likes Jenna Fischer. That said, she's like Rashida Jones, great in an ensemble, but nowhere near enough gravitas to pull off the lead. It's a question of intensity. Even in a light weight movie, the lead has to have some sort of inner tension that can be seen and heard. Fischer is just too easy to look past. You can't bring yourself to worry if she's going to be okay, because you know she will be. She radiates that innocent girlishness that makes men instinctively protective. In fact I'd wager that she's one of those women who hasn't gone more than a month without a steady boyfriend since high school, because 'good guys' won't leave her alone. Also, the directing was beyond lazy. I doubt he told anybody what do ever, including the editor. Frankly, I know a pretty talented guy who could recut this and make it a much better film. Honestly, that may be all it needs. Revised opinion, re-release it after cutting it so Fisher gets more close ups and the dialog moves faster. 6 out of 10Revised, revised Opinion: Wrote review while watching movie (was in about 1:26). Now that it's over my advice is to avoid. Unless you're a hardcore Fischer fan, it's not worth the time investment. Everything that's set up basically just hangs there. The characters don't get smarter (except learning not to tell gigantic lies you can't support). In fact, the writing pretty much loses all direction and just becomes forgettable nonsense with no resolution, point or lesson. 4 out of 10
"A Little Help" is an entertaining 'slice-of-life' story of a woman, disappointed by the men in her life and overwhelmed by the women, who struggles to center herself after the sudden death of her husband. Laura (Jenna Fischer) and Bob (Chris O'Donnell) have allowed their marriage to deteriorate to little more than a shared house with their twelve year old son Dennis (Daniel Yelski) who feels abandoned by both parents. When Bob dies suddenly, Laura must find the strength to overcome her alcoholic tendencies and make her own decisions while her domineering mother and sister try to decide for her. Meanwhile Dennis is forced to make all new friends when he is ushered into a new school far from his old life. Desperate for acceptance, and mourning the father he never got to know, Dennis paints his dad as a fallen hero to his new classmates and teachers. When Laura discovers what her son has done she is livid and demands that he set matters straight at school. But faced with his desperate pleas and worried about the humiliation he will suffer, Laura relents and even goes as far as to support his claims. Perhaps this story might have been presented as a comedy of errors or a farce but instead the viewer is never released from the harsh realities of life long enough to muster a grand guffaw. Neither my wife nor I can figure out how this movie came to be classified as anything other than a drama but we both thoroughly enjoyed it and highly recommend it.
