Little Children

Kate Winslet and Patrick Wilson are young, unfulfilled, middle-class suburban parents who fall into a desperate affair to fill the void of longing in their mundane lives in Todd Field's follow-up to "In the Bedroom." Based on the novel by Tom Perrotta (who collaborates with Field on the Oscar-nominated screenplay), the satire of suburban superficiality, aggressively shallow housewives and self-absorbed professionals is beautifully performed (especially by Oscar nominee Winslet) and directed with a sharp precision, but it comes off a tad glib and obvious to my eyes. Associated Press critic Christy Lemire, however, calls it: "a shrewd, darkly humorous look at supposed civility, at the ways in which we allow ourselves to settle, and a rare depiction of motherhood as a less-than-awesome experience." Jackie Earle Haley picked up the picture's third Academy Award nomination in a supporting role as a convicted sexual predator whose move back into the family neighborhood provokes a campaign of harassment. Jennifer Connelly, Gregg Edelman and Noah Emmerich co-star.