Family dysfunction is one of those topics that indie film writers and directors find endless use for, perhaps because it rarely requires any pricey CGI. And when you can round up a great cast to spin a yarn about someone dealing with their petulant relations, the results can be a lot of fun. So we’re hoping for good things from A.C.O.D., which scored plenty of praise at this year’s Sundance Festival. Check out the trailer.
Adam Scott stars as Carter, who is caught between his warring parents, still ready to spar despite it being 15 years since they divorced. His dad Hugh (Richard Jenkins) has also remarried to a much younger woman (Amy Poehler’s Sondra) and his mother Melissa (Catherine O’Hara) just won’t give up fighting.
Then there’s his brother, Trey (Clark Duke), about to marry his girlfriend of four months. All this pressure sends Carter to see therapist Dr. Judith (Jane Lynch), who drops the bombshell that he was part of a study on divorced children, and she wants him to be part of the follow-up. Still, there are brighter spots for him, such as a burgeoning relationship with Michelle (Jessica Alba).
Director Stu Zicherman and co-writer/Daily Show veteran Ben Karlin have cooked up some funny material here, and they certainly have the actors to make it work. The film arrives in the US soon, but there’s no word on a UK date just yet.