‎August: Osage County (2013) directed by John Wells • Reviews, film + cast • Letterboxd

August: Osage County

2013 Directed by John Wells

Misery loves family

A look at the lives of the strong-willed women of the Weston family, whose paths have diverged until a family crisis brings them back to the Midwest house they grew up in, and to the dysfunctional woman who raised them.

Meryl Streep Julia Roberts Chris Cooper Ewan McGregor Margo Martindale Sam Shepard Dermot Mulroney Julianne Nicholson Juliette Lewis Abigail Breslin Benedict Cumberbatch Misty Upham Will Coffey Newell Alexander Jerry Stahl Dale Dye Ivan Allen Arlin Miller J. Alan Davidson Maria Gus

121 mins More details at IMDb TMDb Report this film

Popular reviews

Review by Matt Singer ★★ 1

Not the best acting of 2013, but certainly the most.
Review by davidehrlich ★★★

as a movie, it's a damn fine play.

you hire a hack filmmaker to stand back and film the whole thing in medium shots / not get in the way of some serious oscar bait, and you get what you get. julianne nicholson is the sneaky mvp.

EAT YOUR FUCKING CATFISH, BITCH.
Review by Nathan Rabin ★★★ 1

(Jon Lovitz voice) Acting!
Review by jude law's receding hairline ★★★ 2

the ACTING... phew
Review by Debbie ★★★ 15

August: Osage County aka a family comes together, and a lot of shit happens.

Originally a Tony-winning play, John Wells' film revival of August: Osage County fails on many parts, especially with such potential, stemming from its collaboration of world-class actors and a original, well-written play in its hands.

Having Letts adapt his play onto the screen is Wells' first mistake, resulting in the film being dreadfully overlong and uneven. The simple fact is, we are watching a play being filmed as a movie. Even a film amateur as myself understands the different technical mediums essential to transition a stage play to the screen -- having melodramatic scenes are great for drama/conflict, but when it becomes filled with overdrawn, repetitive…
Review by Adam Kempenaar ★★★ 5

The problem with finally watching this movie is no longer being able to hate the Academy for nominating Meryl and Julia -- especially the latter, who resists any instinct to soften Barbara, even though it's a sick delight listening to Streep drop the bass and chew on words like "smuuuug" and "fuuuuck" ... But it's Chris Cooper and Margo Martindale and Julianne Nicholson and Dermot Mulroney (yes, Dermot Mulroney) who keep it all grounded. And the real star is Letts and that script. The dinner scene? Truth telling indeed.

Recent reviews

Review by Ayan ★★★★★

Even though Meryl Streep already has 3...she was robbed of her Oscar for this role
Review by Danielle ★★★★

Holy ACTING!!!! 🔥🔥🔥 The dinner scene killed me. This was remarkable and heartbreaking and wow. Truly these characters broke my heart. They were so realistic and tragic and were acted so well. Especially Meryl, my God. Up until the last scene. And Julia...Julia, Julia, Julia. There are no words.
Amazing writing and performing all around. Shook my world.
Review by Josefine ★★★½

Många utmärkta skådespelare i denna tunga, smärtsamma film. Blir lite för kaosigt och eländigt för att det ska passa mig.
Review by Denika Soria

Me: Wait aren't they ... cousins?
Me Later in the Film: Um. Oh Ok. Yikes.

Alternatively-

Me: having a decent time watching a film
Benadryl Cucumber: Surprise, bitch. I bet you thought you'd seen the last of me.
Review by Elaine ★★★

Critics Consensus: The sheer amount of acting going on in August: Osage County threatens to overwhelm, but when the actors involved are as talented as Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts, it's difficult to complain.
Review by Nick DeMarco ★★★

Holy hell this movie is drama city. Every scene somehow escalates into high theatrics as characters begin to yell, smash plates, and slam the hell out of doors. This can be attributed to the fact that this movie is based on the stage script by Tracy Letts. There are some great performances from the star-studded cast, namely Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts. Streep plays the drugged out and dysfunctional mother of the Weston family, Violet while Roberts plays her (eldest?) daughter Barbara. These two give some lively performances but the rest of the cast is not to be outdone. There's a feast of energetic performances...and by that I mean there is a lot of emphatic yelling. Despite the engaging performances…
Review by Harry Brich ★★★★

Ohana means family. Family means causing trauma that's left unresolved for decades to come.
Review by Brad Swenson ★★★

A bit torn on this one. Definitely some strong performances from a few people, but some characters are completely underdeveloped, like McGregor and Cumberbatch's quiet guys.
Review by jude law's receding hairline ★★★ 2

the ACTING... phew