I think this picture gets off on the wrong foot with a title like "Welcome to the Rileys". It seems to signal a comedy in the offing, or maybe I've just been around too long to recall William Bendix in his 1950's TV series 'The Life of Riley'. James Gandolfini looks like he could be a Riley following in the tradition of both Bendix and Jackie Gleason.
But this is no comedy, and even though the picture held my interest well enough, in the end I couldn't help feeling that the premise fell just short of being pulled off successfully. I could accept the idea of the Rileys (Gandolfini and Melissa Leo) living a virtually estranged life following the death of their teenage daughter, up to and including the wife's agoraphobia. What the picture failed to do however, was convince me that Doug Riley would simply walk away from his wife and job to play guardian angel to the stripper/hooker Allison/Mallory (Kristen Stewart), or that Lois would join the effort with not much more than an initial shocked reaction to Mallory's occupation and living quarters. This needed a lot more development to make that humanitarian leap of faith, and I for one found it creepy that anyone would actually lie down on anything in Mallory's apartment.
I thought there was the germ of a good idea planted in the story with Lois' agonizing over her daughter's death, thinking that she might have been responsible for it by following her on that fateful night. Did Doug know it happened that way? The hint is offered, Mallory takes that ball and runs with it, but because Doug isn't biting we never get to find out. That element might have added another intriguing layer to the Riley marital saga.
So were you expecting Mallory to head off to Indianapolis? I thought about it, but that's as far as I got. This wouldn't have been the picture to have that kind of happy ending. Having the Rileys achieve some measure of reconciliation was believable, leaving just enough wiggle room to provide a safety valve for Mallory if she ever needed it. But when all is said and done, I don't think she would ever be that kind of girl.
But this is no comedy, and even though the picture held my interest well enough, in the end I couldn't help feeling that the premise fell just short of being pulled off successfully. I could accept the idea of the Rileys (Gandolfini and Melissa Leo) living a virtually estranged life following the death of their teenage daughter, up to and including the wife's agoraphobia. What the picture failed to do however, was convince me that Doug Riley would simply walk away from his wife and job to play guardian angel to the stripper/hooker Allison/Mallory (Kristen Stewart), or that Lois would join the effort with not much more than an initial shocked reaction to Mallory's occupation and living quarters. This needed a lot more development to make that humanitarian leap of faith, and I for one found it creepy that anyone would actually lie down on anything in Mallory's apartment.
I thought there was the germ of a good idea planted in the story with Lois' agonizing over her daughter's death, thinking that she might have been responsible for it by following her on that fateful night. Did Doug know it happened that way? The hint is offered, Mallory takes that ball and runs with it, but because Doug isn't biting we never get to find out. That element might have added another intriguing layer to the Riley marital saga.
So were you expecting Mallory to head off to Indianapolis? I thought about it, but that's as far as I got. This wouldn't have been the picture to have that kind of happy ending. Having the Rileys achieve some measure of reconciliation was believable, leaving just enough wiggle room to provide a safety valve for Mallory if she ever needed it. But when all is said and done, I don't think she would ever be that kind of girl.