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A legacy piece of local cinema, The Playroom is an interesting look at family dynamics, pinned to the hinge of powerful generations. Time itself plays a role, as we see parents (Olivia Harris, John Hawkes) who missed the most thrilling eras of rebellion and who are now trapped together in a key party-welcoming world. The children, who seem like afterthoughts for their disenchanted mother and serve as validation for their more attentive but still unsettled father, are left mostly to their own devices, under the custodial eye of older sister Maggie. With a screenplay by Gretchen Dyer and direction by sister Julie, the story of how the film came to be and how it was able to secure the talent of “It Boy” John Hawkes is an interesting one. We have a bigger story about its history on our Arts and Culture blog, the Mixmaster, which snoopy types like you should check out. For the rest of you, if you dug The Ice Storm, I think you’ll like The Playroom. It’s screening at the Texas Theatre (231 W. Jefferson Blvd.) through Sunday. Visit thetexastheatre.com.
Feb. 15-17, 2013
