I Smile Back

I Smile Back
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Adam Salky
Screenplay by	Paige Dylan Amy Koppelman
Based on	I Smile Back by Amy Koppelman
Produced by	Brian Koppelman David Levien Mike Harrop Richard Arlook
Starring	Sarah Silverman Josh Charles Thomas Sadoski Mia Barron Skylar Gaertner Shayne Coleman Kristin Griffith Chris Sarandon Terry Kinney
Cinematography	Eric Lin
Edited by	Tamara Meem
Music by	Zack Ryan
Production companies	Egoli Tossell Film Koppelman/Levien
Distributed by	Broad Green Pictures
Release dates	January 25, 2015 (2015-01-25) (Sundance Film Festival) October 23, 2015 (2015-10-23) (United States)
Running time	85 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

I Smile Back is a 2015 American drama film directed by Adam Salky and based on the 2008 novel of the same name by Amy Koppelman, who wrote the screenplay with Paige Dylan. The film stars Sarah Silverman as an upper-middle-class wife and mother struggling with mental illness and addiction. The film had its world premiere at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival on January 25, 2015.^[1] It also screened at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 16, 2015.^[2] The film was released in a limited release on October 23, 2015, by Broad Green Pictures.^[3]

Plot[]

In a nice home in suburban New York, homemaker Laney Brooks snorts white powder in the bathroom while her husband Bruce plays outside with their young children, Eli and Janey. Laney remembers getting takeout food and arguing with Bruce about their new dog. She examines herself in the mirror and submerges herself in the bathtub. Later, Eli wakes from a nightmare and Laney comforts him.

As Bruce gets ready for work in the morning, Laney eyes the bathroom medicine cabinet, then prepares the children's lunches. She drives them to school and has a confrontation with the traffic guard. She greets her friend Susan and is stopped by another guard for not having her ID. She reluctantly waves goodbye to her children and drives away, resentfully mocking the school guard. At a hotel, she has sex with Susan's husband Donny, then chides him afterward, telling him love means nothing. She showers as he sleeps and takes cash from his wallet as she leaves. She misses the exit driving back to school. At dinner, Laney drinks vodka from a wine glass and responds angrily when Eli relates a school friend's opinions. At bedtime she reminds Eli of his upcoming piano recital, then argues again with Bruce about their dog, dreading its eventual death. She phones Eli's friend's mother, curses her and hangs up. She drinks more vodka, downs pills and snorts powder, then wanders into a sleeping Janey's bedroom. Lying on the rug, she clutches Janey's teddy bear, writhing and sobbing. She crawls down the hall and collapses.

Bruce finds her and drives her to a rehab facility, where she argues with the staff and dry heaves in the toilet. Later, Dr. Page tells her about all the drugs detected in her system. Missing is any trace of her lithium prescription. She tells him of her abandonment by her father, Roger. Laney's family visits her for lunch. She notices Eli's increasing distance, and she tries to confess and apologize to Bruce, but he rebuffs her. Later, she tells Dr. Page she wants to smile again. He tells her to take her meds and have faith in herself.

Home from rehab, Laney makes a cake with her family. The power goes out and they sing and dance by candlelight. Later, Laney and Bruce meet with a counselor regarding Eli's anxiety. Eli worries he too will have to go to rehab. Laney and Bruce later go to Donny's restaurant for dinner with him and Susan, who is now pregnant. Donny is patronizing, angering Laney, whereupon she insults the other couple. Later, Laney accompanies Bruce to a seminar in a hotel near Roger's home. While Bruce attends the conference, she takes a cab to Rogers's house, meeting his young child Daisy for the first time. She learns of her grandmother's untimely death. Roger repeats his excuses for abandoning them. Laney cries in the taxi back, calls Bruce and gets no answer. Walking into a bar, she flirts with the bartender and tells him to "keep 'em coming." At the hotel, Bruce packs. Laney enters, apologizing for missing dinner. Tired of her lies, he pushes her against the wall. Leaving, he tells her that the children will be with his sister and that he will meet them all at school for Eli's recital. Later, Laney enters her empty house and wanders around, unable to sleep.

Bruce arrives at the recital as Eli begins playing the piano, hesitantly at first but more confidently as he continues. All applaud when he finishes. Back at home, the family praises Eli. Laney retreats to the bathroom to snort from her hidden stash. Bruce, Eli and Janey find her there, wasted and bleeding from her nose. Laney leaves in an SUV. Reason gone, she closes her eyes, takes her hands off the wheel and drives through a red light unscathed. She drives to Donny's restaurant, asking him for something to calm her down. Susan calls and he leaves. Laney then takes pills from his desk and downs them. She leaves and visits a bar. Ordering a beer, she flirts with a tough-looking man and they have sex in the basement. When she drunkenly taunts him, he slams her face twice into a stone wall and empties her wallet, leaving her unconscious. Later, she awakens caked in blood and takes a cab home. In the predawn glow, she prepares lunches, still battered and bloody. She scans the room; the dog whimpers. She hugs it and notices Bruce staring at her from the upstairs landing. Her face cracking, she shuffles out of the house and shuts the door.

Cast[]

• Sarah Silverman as Elaine "Laney" Brooks
• Josh Charles as Bruce Brooks
• Thomas Sadoski as Donny
• Mia Barron as Susan
• Skylar Gaertner as Eli Brooks
• Shayne Coleman as Janey Brooks
• Sean Reda as Henry
• Chris Sarandon as Roger
• Billy Magnussen as Zach
• Kristin Griffith as Nurse Pauline
• Oona Laurence as Daisy
• Clark Jackson as Mr. Odesky
• Terry Kinney as Dr. Page

Release[]

The film had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 25, 2015.^[4] Shortly after, Broad Green Pictures acquired distribution rights to the film.^[5] The film was selected to screen at the Jerusalem Film Festival on July 11, 2015.^[6] and the Deauville Film Festival on September 6, 2015,^[7] as well as the Toronto International Film Festival on September 16, 2015,^[8] the Oldenburg International Film Festival on September 19, 2015,^[9] and the Chicago International Film Festival on October 16, 2015. The film was released on October 23, 2015, in a limited release.^[10]

Home media[]

I Smile Back was released on DVD and Blu-ray in the United States on February 23, 2016.^[11]

Reception[]

Critical reception[]

I Smile Back received mixed reviews from critics, with universal praise for Silverman's performance. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 49% approval rating, based on 69 reviews, with an average rating of 5.76/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "I Smile Back serves as a powerful showcase for Sarah Silverman's dramatic range, but fails to surround her committed performance with a movie worthy of its depth".^[12] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 59 out of 100, based on 19 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".^[13] IndieWire reviewer Katie Walsh gave strong praise to Silverman's performance in the film.^[14]

Accolades[]

Silverman was nominated for Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role at the 22nd Screen Actors Guild Awards.^[15]

References[]

External links[]

• Official website
• I Smile Back at IMDb
• I Smile Back at Metacritic
• I Smile Back at Rotten Tomatoes