Kate Winslet, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kathryn Hahn, Kathy Bates, Michael Shannon ...( see more  see more... ) , David Harbour , Dylan Baker , Richard Easton , Zoe Kazan , Ryan Simpkins , Ty Simpkins

Frank and April, a married couple in the 1950s, have always seen themselves as special, different, ready and willing to live their lives based on higher ideals. So, as soon as they move into their new...( read more  read more... ) house on Revolutionary Road, they proudly declare their independence from the suburban inertia that surrounds them and determine never to be trapped by the social confines of their era. Yet for all their charm, beauty and irreverence, the Wheelers find themselves becoming exactly what they didn't expect: a good man with a routine job whose nerve has gone missing; a less-than-happy homemaker starving for fulfillment and passion; an American family with lost dreams, like any other. Driven to change their fates, April hatches an audacious plan to start all over again, to leave the comforts of Connecticut behind for the great unknown of Paris. But when the plan is put in motion, each spouse is pushed to extremes--one to escape whatever the cost, the other to save all that they have, no matter the compromises.

Flixster Users

70% liked it

80,059 ratings

Critics

68% liked it

193 critics

R, 1 hr. 59 min.

Directed by: Sam Mendes

Release Date: December 15, 2008

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DVD Release Date: June 2, 2009

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Stats: 9,609 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (9,609)


  • December 26, 2009
    Based on the classic novel which takes a dark, heavy look on 50's American culture. The illusion of happiness 50's style, the phoniness put alongside pent up emotions and broken dreams. Leads to a Sam Mendes depressing conclusion. Not one to watch again but great performances.
  • December 4, 2009
    This one makes it to 4 stars based purely on the acting. It is a performance driven film as there isn?t so much as a storyline more about a fly on the wall watching of the ins and outs of a couple's relationship.

    The content acting-wise was huge and I?m sure quite challenging...( read more) to both main stars.

    Reunited again, are Titanic stars, Winslet, Dicaprio and Bates.

    Nothing like I had expected the film to be and yet an intriguing tale of love.
  • November 3, 2009
    Wow . . . If you know me, you know that Kate Winslet is on my all-time favorite actors list. For me to put a living actor on my all-time favorite list takes some great work. If you know me, you also know that Leonardo DiCaprio not only is not on my all-time favorite actor list,...( read more) but has about as much chance making that list as the proverbial snowball in H-E-Double-Hockey-Sticks.

    So you can imagine my surprise when I finally bit the bullet to watch this and found myself pretty much blown away by DiCaprio's work.

    Now unlike my turning point with, say, Tom Hanks in Da Vinci or Brad Pitt in Devil's Own, I'm not going to be able to say that I might try to re-evaluate my position on DiCaprio's past work. I'm sure my evaluation of his past work is correct: He's not (been) much of an actor. I will say this, however. I'm willing to watch with an unjaundiced eye what DiCaprio does from here on in, to see if he's finally matured into a good actor.

    Kate Winslet does not disappoint, by the way. I believe she is easily the finest actress of her generation. Stunningly good, really. So good, yet again, that she really does deserve to be listed with the greatest actresses of all-time.

    But to reiterate, especially for those of you who know how I've talked about DeCaprio in the past, this is a must-see for his work as well.

    NB: Be in a good mood when you catch this one. I tell you true that this is a draining full-fledged tragedy with little to bring you up from the depths when the final credits roll.

  • October 28, 2009
    An intense film, yet quite disturbing as well with it's unique edge. Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio star as a young married couple in the '50s whose lives are based on what they believe to be of the higher ideals, only to find themselves on emotional rollercoasters due to the...( read more) inadequacy of their stereotypical existence in Connecticut. Frank(DiCaprio) works at a job he hates because he feels that is the way, and never gives himself the chance to find out who he really is. April(Winslet) has a desire to start over again in Paris which was once fondly spoken of by Frank. But do the pieces fit into the puzzle of their dream of the "perfect" life they imagined themselves living?
    I was impressed with Kate Winslet's performance as the daydreaming housekeeper, and Leonardo DiCaprio's performance as the guy who just does what he thinks he has to do as a father and husband. However, each character does questionable things which helps define this union as unsavory indeed.
    The "Stepford Wives"-esque feel of the film is eerie even though it may not have even been planned, and I feel a film like this is scarier than the average horror film of these days. Show me a good thriller of the horror genre, and it's an enjoyable ride. But when it comes to harsh reality so often prevalent in the world, it scares the hell out of me.
    And ironically enough, Kathy Bates of "Misery" portrays a real estate agent who shows them a house on Revolutionary Road.
    "Ozzie and Harriot", I think not.
  • August 8, 2009
    A bit of a slow, melodramatic tale of a married couple's so-called "boring" life in the suburbs in the 1950s. I'm really not a fan of these types of movies because I don't think life in the suburbs is as mundane as Hollywood portrays it... but that's just me.

    Leonardo DiCaprio

    ...( read more) and Kate Winslet were absolutely phenomenal here... in fact, their tremendous acting is the only thing that keeps this film a float. The first 3/4 of this film was fairly dull and unengaging, but the final act was worth the wait and even bumped my rating up a whole star.

    All in all, Revolutionary Road is not a film I'd watch again, but it's worth a view. I didn't think it deserved to be a Best Picture Oscar nominee because there were host of other films that got snubbed that were better, but it's not a total waste of time.

    I thought it was kind of amusing as well that the only sane person in this film happened to be the crazy, insane guy.

  • February 1, 2010
    Recreates the 1950s like a calm but deadly pool, with visual appeal like The Hours and Far From Heaven. However, one must go all the way back to Taylor and Burton in the classic Who?s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? to see a couple grapple this way with the unresolvable tensions withi...( read more)n their marriage. Props to Winslet for her films dealing with the explosive, here and in Little Children and in The Reader. Revolutionary Road might give you a headache, but its performances will stay with you forever.
  • January 20, 2010
    Somewhat fascinating and quite tragic into one look at life in the 50's. Certainly a depressing way to view marriage and relationships, at any rate.
  • January 18, 2010
    too strong, but sets are great...
  • January 17, 2010
    1/17/10 - I guess I'd seen this before. I forgot. I still don't really get the love for it, but I liked it better than the first time I saw it. Maybe if I'd been married or something? Blech.
  • January 15, 2010
    it bored me a bit, but that might be because i watched it in the afternoon in bright summer light. either way...i wasn't paying attention all the time but i did find it reall good

Critic Reviews


January 30, 2009
Nigel Andrews, The Financial Times

Winslet gives Revolutionary Road its depth and heft. That face still gazes at us, with its seraphic blend of beauty and horror, minutes, even hours, after we have left the theatre. full review

January 9, 2009
Amy Biancolli, Houston Chronicle

Viewers in the mood for rip-snorting marital combat should go ahead and partake, but they must prepare to leave the theatre in a state of profound depression. full review

January 5, 2009
Ty Burr, Boston Globe

Winslet gives a fearless performance here. It's not her fault her husband has shrouded it in Taste. full review

January 5, 2009
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

This film is so good it is devastating. A lot of people believe their parents didn't understand them. What if they didn't understand themselves? full review

January 5, 2009
Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail

Sam Mendes has worked in this territory before with his Oscar-winning American Beauty. Revolutionary Road is a better movie because it doesn't rely on such blatant caricatures. full review

January 5, 2009
Colin Covert, The Minneapolis Star Tribune

Revolutionary Road is easily the best-acted film of 2008, and one of the most corrosive. full review

January 5, 2009
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

Revolutionary Road gets my vote as the best American film of 2008. full review

December 29, 2008
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal

The pompous direction was inflicted by Sam Mendes, who seems to regard the 1950s as a foreign country. full review

December 23, 2008
Armond White, The New York Press

It's cynical dramedy for people who pride themselves on being smart -- that is, unsentimental. full review

December 22, 2008
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

Directed with extraordinary skill by Sam Mendes, the film is a tough road well worth traveling. full review

View more Revolutionary Road reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

Comments


  • nine0384
    March 3, 2009
    I got excited about this movie because it really related to me. Well not completely but I want to quit my job and move too! I really thought it was actually going to happen but then it didnt and that sucked. The ending of the movie was pretty random and uncalled for, I think. Extra sad for no reason. I guess I just had hopes of a story of triumph in leaving your mundane life behind and going for your dreams but they slapped me in the face.
  • docfilms06
    January 21, 2009
    There is an insightful and entertaining review of Revolutionary Road on YouTube by people who are veterans in the biz....check it out
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_XjrTKoqQ4
  • laurahunt110
    January 18, 2009
    DiCaprio is truly SENSATIONAL in this film, giving by far the best performance among the cast, and actually elevates the film from being forgettable, to an actual experience.
  • oninaras
    June 21, 2008
    CAN'T WAIT to see them again together..
  • sparksfang
    August 22, 2007
    oo yea!! movie sounds AWSOME!!!!!!!!

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Revolutionary Road Trivia


  • What new film will Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio star in?  Answer »
  • Leonardo DiCaprio co-stars with Kate Winslet in which of the following films?   Answer »
  • In which film will Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio make in 1994 before 'Titanic'?   Answer »
  • Name the director: Revolutionary Road (2008) Jarhead (2005) Road to Perdition (2002) American Beauty (1999)   Answer »

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