Welcome to the Rileys

I liked Welcome to the Rileys. It's well acted, written, and directed, and has a heart to it. I was genuinely engaged in the plot and was unsure how it would end. I will admit, though, there is something unsavory about the whole thing.

James Gandolfini and Melissa Leo star as a couple who have been married for 30 years. They grieve for a teenage daughter who died in a car wreck. Leo has responded by refusing to leave the house, while Gandolfini has fallen into an affair with a waitress. When the waitress dies, Gandolfini is completely bereft.

A plumbing supplies salesman, he attends a convention in New Orleans and to get away from the glad-handing he ducks into a seedy strip club. He meets a dancer (Kristen Stewart) who appears to be too young, but to avoid conventioneers he accompanies her to the V.I.P. room. When he shows no interest in her sexually, she suspects him of being a cop.

In a nice movie convention, they run into each other at a diner and he drives her home. He finds she lives in squalor, and his paternal instincts kick in. She becomes a surrogate for his dead daughter, and he calls his wife, tells her he's not coming home for a while, and sets to taking care of Stewart.

Of course he doesn't touch her, despite her willingness. This is where my creep-meter kicked in. I have no idea of the motivation of writer Ken Hixon, but it sounds like a male fantasy dressed in sheep's clothing. As a guy who has spent more time than I'd like to admit in strip clubs, the idea of taking one of them home and being a sugar daddy is very appealing, especially if they looked like Stewart. Hixon, though, is careful to turn this into a movie about a different kind of family, but it's hard to watch without wondering how Gandolfini, despite assigning Stewart the role of his daughter, wouldn't have a temptation to touch her.

Also, his decision to enter the dark doorway of the strip club is never fully explained. Once in the place he has no interest in looking at the dancers, and his character is not established as that kind of guy, so why did he do it? Well, he had to, to meet Stewart, but it doesn't add up.

Aside from that, it's a well-done film. It was directed by Jake Scott, son of Ridley, who uses the New Orleans locations well. Gandolfini is his typically excellent self, and Leo is also good. In fact, this was the best performance she gave last year, much more interesting and subtle that the screaming and hand-waving she did in The Fighter.

But the revelation here is Stewart. Apparently she was cast in this role before Twilight, and it's the best performance I've seen her give. Her combination of anger and vulnerability as a sixteen-year-old runaway who strips and turns tricks is so raw and powerful it gave me goosebumps. When the Twilight series is over I hope she branches out and does more interesting work like this one.