Synopsis
Kate and Charlie like to have a good time. Their marriage thrives on a shared fondness for music, laughter… and getting smashed. When Kate’s partying spirals into hard-core asocial behavior, compromising her job as an elementary schoolteacher, something’s got to give. But change isn’t exactly a cakewalk. Sobriety means she will have to confront the lies she’s been spinning at work, her troubling relationship with her mother, and the nature of her bond with Charlie.
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Cast
- Mary Elizabeth WinsteadKate Hannah
- Aaron PaulCharlie Hannah
- Octavia SpencerJenny
- Nick OffermanDave Davies
- Megan MullallyPrincipal Barnes
- Mary Kay PlaceRochelle
- Kyle GallnerOwen Hannah
- Mackenzie DavisMillie
- Bree TurnerFreda
- Brad CarterFelix
Recommendations
- 100
The Playlist
Ponsoldt, Paul and Winstead make a remarkably effective team for this film's points and purposes, and Smashed burns long after it goes down smoothly. - 91
Entertainment Weekly
What's new about the unsensationalized portrait of one-day-at-a-time progress (and setbacks) is the low-key energy of this drunks' tale, by and for a generation with a high tolerance for humor and a low tolerance for soapiness. - 90
The Hollywood Reporter
Its sharp writing and essential credibility make this small, intimate tale fresh and involving. - 90
Village Voice
Movies about drugs and alcohol might be a dime (bag) a dozen, but James Ponsoldt's Smashed is so beautifully shot and well acted as to transcend the genre. - 83
The A.V. Club
In spite of the out-of-place pregnancy subplot, Smashed is a film of pummeling intensity and bruised emotions. - 80
Variety
A terrific performance by Mary Elizabeth Winstead as a rock-bottom alcoholic is only one reason to appreciate Smashed, an affecting and immersive addiction drama about the unforeseen pitfalls along the road to recovery. - 75
IndieWire
Winstead's performance provides a trenchant wakeup call even when the movie can't keep pace. - 75
NPR
The truthfulness of Winstead's performance - and those of her co-stars, too - has a steadying influence on James Ponsoldt's modest drama, which at times seems in danger of failing a sobriety test.
