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      Winter Solstice

      2004, Drama, 1h 33m

      81 Reviews 1,000+ Ratings

      What to know

      Critics Consensus

      A deliberately paced, realistic portrait of a family's grief and healing. Read critic reviews

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      Winter Solstice  Photos

      Movie Info

      It's been five years since a wife and mother was killed in a car crash, but her surviving husband, Jim Winters (Anthony LaPaglia), can't bridge the gap that has grown between him and his teenage sons. Pete (Mark Webber), who was with his mother when she died, is doing badly in school. Gabe (Aaron Stanford) talks of leaving town and pushes his sympathetic girlfriend away. But when Jim helps move new neighbor Molly (Allison Janney) into her home, the first possibilities of healing begin to stir.

      • Rating: R (Language)

      • Genre: Drama

      • Original Language: English

      • Director: Josh Sternfeld

      • Producer: Doug Bernheim, John Limotte

      • Writer: Josh Sternfeld

      • Release Date (Theaters):  original

      • Release Date (Streaming):

      • Box Office (Gross USA): $319.2K

      • Runtime:

      • Distributor: Paramount Pictures

      • Production Co: Sound Pictures

      • Sound Mix: Dolby SRD

      • Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.37:1)

      Cast & Crew

      Critic Reviews for Winter Solstice

      Audience Reviews for Winter Solstice

      • Feb 10, 2008

        Not very exciting, but a pretty accurate depiction of what a real persons life is like. And as such there was really no plot, or climax, or ending. Still somehow it wasn't boring, so they did something right.

        Super Reviewer
      • Dec 08, 2007

        A great film! Very touching story about a widower and his two sons, and the struggle to have to overcome to get over the death of a wife and mother.

        Super Reviewer
      • May 05, 2007

        Story about dealing with a loss in the family and the difficulties of parents understanding teens and vice versa. There is a certain slowness or lulling rhythm to the film

        Super Reviewer
      • Jul 13, 2006

        [font=Century Gothic]In "Winter Solstice", Jim Winters(Anthony LaPaglia) is a single father who owns his own landscaping business in a small town. His eldest son, Gabe(Aaron Stanford), works in a restaurant pretty much non-stop in an effort to save up as much money as he can before leaving for Tampa to work on a boat. In the process he would leave his loving girlfriend, Stacey(Michelle Monaghan), behind. Gabe's younger brother, Pete(Mark Webber), sporting an unfashionable looking hearing aid, is on the ten-year plan in high school and is set to go to summer school. Molly Ripken(Alison Janney) is a housesitter that moves in nearby...[/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]In "Winter Solstice", not much happens.(I do not mind if a movie is slow, just as long as it is headed somewhere.) I know that in real life people are more likely to be hanging out at the local Dariy Queen than having life-changing events, but it does not make for compelling drama.[/font] [font=Century Gothic][/font] [font=Century Gothic]All of which is a shame because the movie wastes a fine cast including Anthony LaPaglia. Michelle Monaghan and Alison Janney brighten whatever room they are in. And Ron Livingston almost steals the movie playing a history teacher.[/font]

        walter m Super Reviewer

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