Special Jury Prize Winner at 2012 Sundance Film Festival SMASHED Starring Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Two-Time Emmy Award® winner Aaron Paul Nick Offerman, Emmy Winner Megan Mullally, Emmy Winner Mary Kay Place and Academy Award® Winner Octavia Spencer Recommended by Whom You Know We Are Thrilled to Continue Our Coverage of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Our Coverage Sponsored by Hallak Cleaners the Couture Cleaner
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Whom You Know is absolutely thrilled to continue our coverage of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment with Smashed, a serious look at alcoholism, relationships, and overcoming adversity in life. Its stellar execution of character development is both inspirational and touching to anyone with a heart, and though it is often more appealing to look at life through rose-colored glasses, confronting reality is necessary to live your best life.
Mary Elizabeth Winstead's performance as Kate, the main character, is flawless as she confronts her own reality including as a teacher getting sick in her own classroom in front of her audience of students who believe she must be pregnant, and performing karaoke under the influence which leads her to meet someone whom she believes to be in trouble, ultimately leading her to crack and perhaps her biggest mistake. When all goes from embarrassing to scary, as she puts it, Kate finally has a concept of what has really gone wrong in her life, but in fairness, is not always easy to see with her enabling troubled husband who eggs her on through it all, blind to alcoholism.
It must be absolutely scary to wake up and not remember what has happened to you, particularly when you're outside. This has happened to Kate and you'll be right there with her. Bike riding in the middle of the street under the influence is not out of the ordinary, nor wet confrontations at the convenience store. Kate's strategy all changes when she's invited to an AA meeting by a colleague from work who has more than one foot in his mouth, and who recognizes her pattern of behavior as he himself lived it. When she chooses the meeting over a late-night concert with her husband, choosing that road makes all the difference.
Not only is she negatively influenced by her husband, but her alcoholic mother also haunts her when the couple goes to visit her and ignores her daughter when she says no to the Bloody Mary. The fact that Kate's father became sober and left their family also played a role in her troubles.
Other than Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Octavia Spencer who plays Kate's AA sponsor is stellar and spot-on in her acting.
Though we advocate alcohol in our column Champagne Wishes, we do not advocate drinking in excess or drinking if you have a problem and we were pleased to cover Sober St. Patrick's Day in the past in New York. If you are battling alcoholism surely you will be able to relate to this, and perhaps just as much if you have ever been close to someone that is.
Whom You Know Recommends Smash. Though parts are disturbing, the overall honesty will impress you and it is a poignant reminder to look critically at your life and make improvements when necessary and the story overall after you've viewed it will uplift you.
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Special Jury Prize Winner at 2012 Sundance Film Festival
SMASHED
Starring Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Two-Time Emmy Award® winner Aaron Paul Nick Offerman, Emmy Winner Megan Mullally, Emmy Winner Mary Kay Place and Academy Award® Winner Octavia Spencer
SMASHED, the powerful and gripping drama starring
Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter) and two-time Emmy Award®-winner
Aaron Paul (TV’s “Breaking Bad,” Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series, 2012; 2010), arrives on Blu-ray™ and DVD March 12th from Sony Pictures Classics and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
The star-studded supporting cast includes Nick Offerman (TV's “Parks & Recreation”), Emmy winner
Megan Mullally (TV's “Will & Grace,” Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series, 1998 and TV’s “Parks and Recreation”), Emmy winner Mary Kay Place (TV's “Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman,” Outstanding Continuing Performance by a Supporting Actress, Comedy Series, 1977) and Academy Award®-winner Octavia Spencer (The Help, Best Supporting Actress, 2012).
Winner of the Special Jury Prize at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival, SMASHED is an intensely moving story about love, fidelity and what it means to love someone and be committed to them, while recognizing the need to change your life…and the heartbreaking discovery that your partner won't be changing with you.
Special features on the Blu-ray and DVD include commentary with director James Ponsoldt and
Mary Elizabeth Winstead, deleted scenes and two featurettes: “Making Smashed” gives viewers a true behind-the-scenes look at creating the film with the cast and crew, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Octavia Spencer walk the red carpet and answer fan questions in the “Toronto Film Festival Red Carpet and Q&A.”
SMASHED was directed and co-written by James Ponsoldt with Susan Burke, and produced by Jonathan Schwartz, President and Founder of Super Crispy Entertainment.
SYNOPSIS
Kate and Charlie are a young married couple whose bond is built on a mutual love of music, laughter and alcohol...especially the latter. When Kateʼs drinking leads her to dangerous places and her job as a school teacher is put in jeopardy, she decides to join AA and get sober. With the help of her friend and sponsor Jenny, and the vice principal at her school, the awkward, but well-intentioned Mr. Davies, Kate takes steps toward improving her health and life. Sobriety isnʼt as easy as Kate had anticipated. Her new lifestyle forces her to confront a troubling relationship with her mother, as well as the necessity of facing the lies sheʼs told her employer. She also must question whether or not her relationship with Charlie is built on love or is just a boozy diversion from adulthood.
Blu-ray & DVD Special Features include:
Commentary with Director James Ponsoldt & Actress Mary Elizabeth Winstead
Deleted Scenes
Two Featurettes:
Making Smashed
Toronto Film Festival Red Carpet and Q&A
SMASHED has a run time of approximately 91 minutes and is rated R for alcohol abuse, language, some sexual content and brief drug use.
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SONY PICTURES HOME ENTERTAINMENT
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is a Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) company. Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation. SPE's global operations encompass motion picture production and distribution; television production and distribution; home entertainment acquisition and distribution; a global channel network; digital content creation and distribution; operation of studio facilities; development of new entertainment products, services and technologies; and distribution of entertainment in more than 159 countries. For additional information, go to http://www.sonypictures.com/
