Review: Personally, I found this movie pretty boring but the storyline wasn't to bad. Dennis Quaid plays Henry Whipple, who wants his rebellious son, Dean (Zac Efron) to help expand the family business but Dean wants to become a professional racing car driver, which puts a strain on there relationship. Dean has a string of awards under his belt, for his racing skills but when he loses an important race, which is being watched by some potential investors, he goes into depression and his rebellious behaviour becomes worse. Meanwhile, his father's farm is under investigation because of some wrong doings with some seeds, so his son takes matters into his own hands, to find the culprit who hired the investigators. After an alteration with another farmers son, his father helps him to cover up what he has done, which brings them closer as a family. Dean then helps the business and brings in some important customers but his father finds it hard to live with the guilt. Its a touching story which has some emotional moments but I did find It a bit boring after a while. The acting is average from Efron and the rest of the cast but Quaid stands out from the rest. In all, it's an average movie which is watchable but not one that you can watch time and time again. Average!Round-Up: This is definitely one of those films that are made for TV, even with the popular Zac Efron in the cast. Its written and directed by Ramin Bahrani, 40, who brought you 99 Homes and a couple of short movies. The storyline isn't that entertaining, which might explain it's late release on DVD and the profit at the box office is pretty poor, so it didn't go down well with audiences. With that aside, I was quite surprised with the major turn in the movie, after the alteration in the field but apart from that, it's your everyday family drama which is basically what it says on the tin.Budget: N/A Worldwide Gross: $490,000I recommend this movie to people who are into their drama/thrillers starring Zac Efron, Dennis Quad, Kim Dickens, Clancy Brown, Heather Graham, Maika Monroe and Chelcie Ross. 3/10

I'm aware of criticisms people have of this movie. I even agree with some of them. And yet, I'm sure I'll remember it for a long time and I'll remember liking it a lot. Yes, it's melodramatic. Yes, it has 1 or 2 bits that are trashier than necessary. (Hey, I like a trashy bit now and then.) Are the characters likable? I think so but when did that become the No. 1 criterion for evaluating a drama? Disclosure: I'm originally from a few miles where this was actually filmed. I feel like I know this movie. The cast spans all ages and I find it especially gratifying to watch emerging stars, there are a couple of those in this. The film deals with serious subjects but it's not a message film. Makes you think but does not --would not-- tell you what to think. Contemporary midwestern noir. Click on the trailer and decide whether to watch the whole film. Many of you will wanna watch.

Unless you are expecting to watch a somewhat morbid, black melodrama, stay away from this film.As already expressed by other reviewers, there is little to appreciate and enjoy. The protagonists have thinly defined characters. Supporting roles do nothing to drive the story, which, in itself, is put together sparingly. There was little to be surprised about. Much of the story was predictable; many of the lines where clichés; and, the final desperate acts to save the farm were much too contrived and unbelievable.It was hard to watch Dennis Quaid play the role of a misled father and crooked farmer in America's heartland. He may have succeeded if his character was better developed, but like all the other characters, there was little, if any, time given for the audience to understand or feel anything for them. I feel Quaid was miscast for his role. It hurt to hear and watch him deliver some outlandish and quirky lines.What made me stay with this film to the very end was the hope that something would soon change and the story would finally have some redeeming finale. But it never happened. It may have worked as a tragedy but only with a better written script and smoothly developed characters. Don't expect any level of principles, ethics or values to be portrayed or used for balance or contrast. It was absent throughout.

Sometimes, a movie character's stress is so all-encompassing and so consuming in his or her world that you begin to feel it in your own world, regardless of whether or not you've experience what they're going through. Director Ramin Bahrani, if nothing else, articulates internal conflicts and mental pressure beautifully in his latest offering At Any Price, a landmark in his film career as it is the most mainstream release a film of his has gotten and I'm sure numerous people still haven't heard about it.This is my introduction to Bahrani's work as a feature film director. His short film, simply titled "Paper Bag," was, hear me out, a twenty minute long film focusing on a listless paper bag that would travel by the way of the wind and would encounter numerous animals and obstacles along the way. The short was narrated by iconic actor and director Werner Herzog and possessed such an absurdist beauty about it that was equal parts whimsical and heartwarming. I couldn't recommend it enough.The film stars Dennis Quaid as Henry Whipple, owner of more than 3,000 acres of farmland in Iowa and the proud inheritor of Liberty Seeds, a company that sells and utilizes genetically-modified seeds. Henry hopes one day he'll be able to pass on the farm to his young son, like his dad did to him. However, his son Dean (Zac Efron) shows no interest in inheriting the farm, and sets his sights on being a race-car driver, competing in local events statewide in order to obtain money to perhaps make it that far. He is given encouragement by Cadence (Maika Monroe), his sort-of girlfriend, even though he begins to write her off as his aspirations begin to seemingly evolve into something. In need of help, with competition in the contemporary agriculture world increasing and the possibility of a scandal on Liberty Seeds becoming others' knowledge, Henry takes Cadence underneath his wing as an intern and introduces her to the world, while simultaneously trying to combat it.It's clear that Bahrani didn't just want to use Iowa farmlands as a backdrop for his story. Him and co-writer Hallie Elizabeth Newton admirably immerse themselves into the culture of competitive agriculture, and show audiences through board-meetings, shady deals, and family dialog just how stressful of an environment this is. But what At Any Price's ultimate goal is lies on how it portrays the search for values and morality when money and company-placement is what it all boils down to. This isn't a tiresome trudge through morality in terms of how each right and wrong is rewarded, but rather it's about the choices we make and how we want to be seen by others. Henry seems like he once started out as an honest, moral man of his word, but now, he possesses the transparency, the attitude, and the fake smile akin to that of a politician. His son Dean is lost in the idea of trying to find himself when his father is not showing the characteristics of a role model or a caring member of his family. He worries about position and what the public thinks they know about him. This leads Dean to do things in the film he will later regret, if he chooses to reconnect with the path of kinder humanism.A story like this is only levied by performances, and thankfully the likes of Dennis Quaid and Zac Efron offer remarkably maturing ones. Quaid is an actor somewhat like Nicolas Cage and Robert De Niro in the way he chooses sometimes completely asinine film roles that clearly do not challenge him in ways we love to seem him challenged. But every so often, Quaid - like Cage and De Niro - will choose an offbeat film role and knock it out of the park. Scarcely has stress on a film character been so evident and relatable and this is thanks to a performance of remarkable quality by Quaid. Efron, as well, after hanging in the teen-girl crowd for a bit too long with films like High School Musical, 17 Again, and Charlie St. Cloud that, while maybe fun on an escapist level, do not give him the appropriate amount of human leverage he deserves. In At Any Price, he evokes a much more mature persona than we've seen him, and if he can't tolerate the lack of limelight and publicity a film like this brings, I see no reason why he wouldn't continue to do films like these.This is one the heaviest character-pieces I've come across this year. Not a lot happens in the film, but what does is subtle and strong in terms of furthering an encompassing theme. The film could be mistaken for sending mixed signals due to its unfocused nature, be a bit impulsive with some plot-strands not developing enough, and be criticized as too methodical because of several scenes relying on time passing and location. I agree with all of these points on some level, but feel the large majority of criticism has missed the mark because it doesn't give the film credit for attempting to articulate something that is greatly becoming grayer and grayer and that is what we, as humans, value in life. We like to think of ourselves as kind, gentle people, but when several outlets bombard us with dehumanizing stereotypes, images of pure cruelty, and the degradation of a moral compass and an increase in narcissistic, arrogant importance - especially in American culture - it's becoming a bit disconcerting in how nihilistic and careless we have become as a whole. At Any Price tries to magnify this concern, but on a much smaller scale, and remarkably succeeds in some very difficult aspects - especially considering it features a story that can easily be written off as noneventful.