Win Win (with Director Q&A)

Win Win is Tom McCarthy's third time as a writer  / director. His first two films were The Station Agent and The Visitor. Both great films. Now he's three for three. How can the creep lying newspaper reporter from season 5 of the Wire be such a great writer and director?

This time he focuses on financial crisis and family issues. All within the backdrop of high school wrestling. And its fantastic. Paul Giamatti plays the dad. He's a lawyer with few clients. He's a wrestling coach with a bad team. One of his clients becomes unsuitable to live at home. So he decides to become his legal guardian (which comes with a nice monthly check) and puts the old man in a home. Everything is fine until the old man's grandson shows up to live with him. Paul's family takes him in. He has the kid work out with the wrestling team. Turns out he's pretty good. The kid comes out of his shell. The family opens up.

There is more to it but again, I don't like to play spoiler alert. Trust me, it is a good film. Now, on to Tom himself. He was there for a post film Q&A. After he made The Visitor, he had an idea for a film. He called his old high school buddy and they talked about their days wrestling in high school. Neither of them were any good. And from there the story was born. Shot on Long Island, posing as New Jersey. Instead of teaching young kids to wrestle, they put out a casting call for wrestlers and screen tested them to see if they could act. The kid they ended up with had bleach blonde hair and a few weeks after they finished shooting, he won the state wrestling tournament.

Did you enjoy it?
Yes.

Would you see it in theaters again?
Yes.

Would you buy it?
Maybe.

Would you rent it?
Yes.

Would you watch it if you saw it was on TV?
Yes.