Much has been made of Aniston playing the role sans her usual make-up and hair styling, as if that's some great sacrifice and hardship she had to endure. He's suffering from his own sort of pain, and the two end up as kindred spirits of sorts, although the film thankfully doesn't take them down the path many will likely expect. freeway bridge from which she leapt) eventually leads her to that woman's widowed husband (Sam Worthington, so much better in these smaller roles than all of those big budget blockbusters in which he's appeared). The protagonist's quest to learn every detail she can about Nina's suicidal plunge (including visiting the L.A. That character's suicide occurs before the film begins, but it's what drives Claire to come to grips with her condition and the events that got her where she is today and essentially ruined her marriage to her fellow lawyer husband (Chris Messina) who's since moved out. Until then, we watch as Aniston's character metaphorically limps through life, all while dealing with nightmares and visions of her former friend and fellow chronic pain sufferer (Anna Kendrick) tormenting and egging her on to follow in her footsteps of alleviating said pain. Director Daniel Barnz - working from a screenplay by Patrick Tobin - is in no hurry to reveal what that catalyst was, although it's fairly certain it will come up at some point during the film's 100-some minute run-time. Unfortunately for her, her perturbed when not angry demeanor has gotten her kicked out the latter, and it's obvious by some fairly significant facial scars that something bad happened in the past that's left her in her current physical and emotional state. Usually dressed in a robe, sweat pants and anything else deemed comfortable, she spends her days in bed when not riding completely prone in the passenger seat of her driven by her caretaker (a good Adriana Barraza) to see her doctor, therapist or chronic pain sufferers support group. A fictional account of one such sufferer occurs in the movie "Cake." In it, Jennifer Aniston plays a former lawyer who pops painkillers like candy in hopes of alleviating her constant suffering. Thankfully, both subsided.īut I'm aware of people who suffer from chronic pain, be that migraines, arthritis or what have you and I truly feel sorry for them. Granted, I've never probably experienced truly excruciating pain, although a bruised rib back in my football days made every single breath hurt, while a bout of sciatica in my later years felt like someone sawing straight down my femur for months. And that's because while I can isolate pain and deal with it in a variety of ways, rarely does anything - beyond time - work for me in alleviating that overall lousy feeling related to being nauseous. OUR TAKE: 6 out of 10 I've always been an "I'll take pain any day over nausea" kind of guy. As they try to deal with that, Claire must decide if her life is worth living. Claire has nightmares and hallucinations about interacting with Nina who seems to encourage her to follow in her footsteps of stopping her pain forever, which eventually causes Claire to come to know Roy and realize he's suffering through emotional pain just like her. To make matters worse, a fellow support group member, Nina Collins (ANNA KENDRICK), has recently committed suicide, thus leaving her husband, Roy (SAM WORTHINGTON), alone to care for their young son, Casey (EVAN O'TOOLE). With the help of her caretaker, Silvana (ADRIANA BARRAZA), she goes from her doctor to physical therapy to a support group for those also suffering from chronic pain, but she isn't getting any better. PLOT: Claire Bennett (JENNIFER ANISTON) was once a lawyer for the ACLU, but following an accident that emotionally and physically scarred her and ultimately destroyed her marriage to fellow lawyer Jason (CHRIS MESSINA), she now spends her days dealing with chronic pain that's left her unable to work. QUICK TAKE: Drama: A former lawyer tries to cope with the recent suicide of her friend and fellow chronic pain sufferer. (2014) (Jennifer Aniston, Adriana Barraza) (R)
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