Pro. Wheeler
Citizen Ruth
Stars such as Laura Dern, Swoozie Kurtz, and Kurtwood Smith are featured in the dramatic comedy, Citizen Ruth. The film takes place during the early 90’s in rural American community.
Ruth Stoops, played by Laura Dern, is a poor drug addict whos life becomes even more complicated by becoming pregnant with her fifth child. When the judge orders her to get an abortion or face a jail sentence, Ruth becomes tied in the middle of the pro-life/pro-choice war where both parties are wanting her to take there side and be a “message” to the world in order to gain an edge for their party.
The acting within the film seems to be the downfall of the movie. Laura seems to “over act” her part as Ruth making the film seem to be a little cheesy. Throughout the film, Ruth tends to portray the role of a child rather than an adult. Huffing is dangerous yes, but come on. It doesn’t make you stupid in the sense of intelligence. In the scene where the pro-life “Babysavers” promote a $15,000 check to Ruth, she has the reaction as you would see from a six year old.
While all isn’t bad, the direction of the film really picks up the slack. Alexander Payne, the director, does a good job with portraying the story line throughout the film. Viewing the film, you have a great understanding of what is going on through to the end. At no time is there a moment where you are left confused or not understanding what is happening. Payne really brings to light the message about drug use that is separated apart from the pro-life/pro-choice war. While the comedy is directed more towards a less mature audience, it is still there and done quite well.
Overall, I feel that Citizen Ruth has a good story line behind it followed up by good directing. All that really needs to be fixed is the acting by the lead role, Ruth. Once this is done, it will feel less cheesy and will bring out the comedy of the film as a whole. I would recommend this film to potential viewers. If you are looking for a film filled with decent comedy and a good story line, then this is the one for you.