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Labor Day

Play trailer Poster for Labor Day PG-13 Released Jan 31, 2014 1h 51m Romance Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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34% Tomatometer 199 Reviews 54% Popcornmeter 10,000+ Ratings
At the tender age of 13, Henry Wheeler (Gattlin Griffith) grapples with the pains of adolescence while caring for his troubled, reclusive mother, Adele (Kate Winslet). One day while shopping for school supplies, Henry and Adele encounter Frank Chambers (Josh Brolin), an intimidating man but one who clearly needs their help. Frank convinces the two of them to take him into their home, but later it becomes clear that he is a convict who has escaped. Based on the novel by Joyce Maynard.
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Labor Day

Labor Day

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Critics Consensus

Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin make for an undeniably compelling pair, but they can't quite rescue Labor Day from the pallid melodrama of its exceedingly ill-advised plot.

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Critics Reviews

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Jason Bailey Flavorwire Too often, 'Labor Day' feels like a sternly resolved, self-consciously determined break from that tradition, a filmmaker deciding "I am making a Serious Drama" and steadfastly refusing to allow even a note of levity into the proceedings. Jun 18, 2016 Full Review Jonathan Romney Observer (UK) The initial Hitchcockian tension soon slackens into slop, with a dash of lukewarm eroticism. Rated: 1/5 Mar 23, 2014 Full Review Anna Smith metro.co.uk Performances are strong, the chemistry is palpable and romantic sorts will get something from the Stockholm syndrome story. Rated: 3/5 Mar 21, 2014 Full Review JD Duran InSession Film Labor Day is a tragic mess on all kinds of levels. It’s not that you’d expect this movie to win awards or anything, but you can expect a lot more from Reitman, who really misses the mark big time here. Rated: D+ Aug 12, 2024 Full Review Matt Brunson Film Frenzy The movie’s compression of characterizations and storylines makes it seem like it was adapted from one of those trashy beach reads that are digested and forgotten over the course of one sunburnt afternoon. Rated: 2/4 Mar 19, 2023 Full Review Emiliano Basile EscribiendoCine The film doesn't round off a concise story, falling towards the end in the common places that tried so hard to avoid. [Full review in Spanish] Rated: 5/10 Sep 13, 2022 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Jacquelyn J Really enjoyable film... I was hooked from the start Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/12/24 Full Review Jakob S A fierce-looking gentleman steals the hearts of a fatherless boy and his single mother. From that sentence alone, one can conclude that there may be something missing. And indeed, something was, in fact, missing. Considering the film was made eleven years ago, many elements of this story age poorly, including but not limited to the dependency the story has on the strength of masculinity. All the major beats of Labor Day are directly played by Frank (Josh Brolin), and repeatedly the audience is stuffed with the idea that true salvation will occur for Henry (Gattlin Griffiith) and Adele (Kate Winslet) only after a man saves them. In fact, there doesn’t even seem an established law that the savior must be Frank. Any man that will protect Adele’s shattered existence and teach Henry how to better play baseball can be this story’s hero. Honestly, the film suffers most from a flatness that has been associated with the archetypal damsel-in-distress narrative that we have all interacted with so many times before, but for Reitman’s version - we’ve added a son for the man to save as well. There wasn’t too much that Kate Winslet or Josh Brolin could change, considering how the film was written, but they both express a mutual pain that is the sole responsibility of any emotional depth found. Both actors try their best to ignite a sense of urgency at times of high stress, while they navigate stark, strange shifts into romantic, scenes of sentimentality. The clunkiness of Frank and Adele’s relationship set choppy waters for these two stars to stay afloat, but I really did appreciate their chemistry at intimate scenes of consolation. One of the strongest scenes in the entire film is when Adele attempts to drive to the pharmacy, and rather than Frank ignoring her distinct stress, he gives her the floor to tell her history about losing control of her body - and ultimately her life. All in all, this film proves that strong performances can’t save work that fails to… well, feel. I don’t believe that Henry’s life is saved by his interactions over one labor day weekend with a good guy, and I don’t appreciate the suggestion that Adele’s life is only worth her relationship with that same, good guy. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 11/08/24 Full Review Shay k Ok so obviously this movie is horrible it just gets 3 stars for being hilarious. Kate Winslet is a sex starved single mom who is taken hostage by a sexy prison escapee. He immediately starts doing dad stuff around the house. Manly stuff that Kate couldn't possibly accomplish with her delicate hands like fixing the deck and her car and teaching the kid how to throw a baseball. He shows her how to do several things from behind including batting a baseball and sensually mixing a peach pie. They bang and the kid listens and also gets horny?? The kid is having like sex dreams about other kids and is scared of it. It's all so weird and clearly the wet dream of a middle aged woman turned into a script Rated 3 out of 5 stars 11/08/24 Full Review Chris R Don't know what the negative reviews are about, great film. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/04/24 Full Review Melanie E I absolutely loved this film. The three lead characters were outstanding and there was wonderful chemistry between Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin. It was definitely not a thriller, nor did it try to be. It was just a beautiful love story. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 10/30/24 Full Review Roger L The critics are very unfair but expected from US critics. Americans expects criminals to act as criminals, not as nice and responsible persons. The story is very good and Kate Winslet is brilliant in her role. But that is no surprise. I think that she and Cate Blanchett are the best actresses in the world. On third place I put Susan Sarandon. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 10/23/24 Full Review Read all reviews
Labor Day

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Cast & Crew

Labor Day

Labor Day: Official Clip - Adele Miscarries Labor Day: Official Clip - Adele Miscarries 2:54 Labor Day: Official Clip - Awkward Dinner Labor Day: Official Clip - Awkward Dinner 1:44 Labor Day: Official Clip - The Kidnapping Labor Day: Official Clip - The Kidnapping 2:58 Labor Day: Official Clip - Frank's Letter Labor Day: Official Clip - Frank's Letter 2:33 Labor Day: Official Clip - Barry Figures It out Labor Day: Official Clip - Barry Figures It out 2:18 Labor Day: Official Clip - Making Peach Pie Labor Day: Official Clip - Making Peach Pie 2:59 Labor Day: Official Clip - Frank's Arrest Labor Day: Official Clip - Frank's Arrest 2:34 Labor Day: Official Clip - Caught by the Neighbor Labor Day: Official Clip - Caught by the Neighbor 2:51 Labor Day: Official Clip - The Police Officer Labor Day: Official Clip - The Police Officer 2:41 Labor Day: Official Clip - First Kiss Labor Day: Official Clip - First Kiss 1:21 View more videos
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Movie Info

Synopsis At the tender age of 13, Henry Wheeler (Gattlin Griffith) grapples with the pains of adolescence while caring for his troubled, reclusive mother, Adele (Kate Winslet). One day while shopping for school supplies, Henry and Adele encounter Frank Chambers (Josh Brolin), an intimidating man but one who clearly needs their help. Frank convinces the two of them to take him into their home, but later it becomes clear that he is a convict who has escaped. Based on the novel by Joyce Maynard.
Director
Jason Reitman
Producer
Lianne Halfon, Russell Smith, Jason Reitman, Helen Estabrook
Screenwriter
Jason Reitman
Distributor
Paramount Pictures
Production Co
Right of Way Films, Mr. Mudd
Rating
PG-13 (Sexuality|Brief Violence|Thematic Material)
Genre
Romance, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jan 31, 2014, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Dec 28, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA)
$13.4M
Runtime
1h 51m
Sound Mix
SDDS, Dolby Digital
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