Joe Warr (Clive Owen) is a sportswriter who suffers his wife's death. All of a sudden, he's left with two boys to raise. Instead of dealing with his grief and anger, he takes off with the boys on a reckless trip with the philosophy of "just say yes".This is a hard film to watch mainly because Joe is unable or unwilling to deal with his wife's death. The sons don't improve the situation. The younger son is too bratty, and the older son is too pathetically weak. It is truly frustrating to watch this dysfunctional family. It does improve as they conflict with each other, and they start dealing with their issues. But unless you like emotional punishment, this film isn't for you.

I guess anyone can try to get their life story out there nowadays, no matter how boring. The only reason I sat through this dull film was to see if something, anything, would happen before it ended. That something happened in the first 5 minutes: Clive Owen's wife of 6 years dies - suddenly, I might add - of cancer. He is left a sullen shell of a man, unable to keep his house clean and look after his young son. True stories usually have something inspirational or redemptive about them. At least they should or it is not a story worth telling. No such luck here. He tries to reconcile with the older son from a first marriage, who lives with his ex-wife half a world away. I could go and tell you how he ambles through each day, but it would be just as boring as it sounds. This film really had nothing to say, and it is easily the worst movie I have seen in years.I don't have a grudge against this type of movie. I actually am a sucker for a weepie done right. The best examples would be MEN DON'T LEAVE (with Jessica Lange) and of course TERMS OF ENDEARMENT. I am among the few people who have actually seen MEN DON'T LEAVE, and it is a masterpiece. A terrific example of tempering your weepie with humor and interesting characters. I'd sit through it a dozen times.

(spoilers)Well written, acted, and directed, caught "The Boys are Back" on a recent plane flight. It stood out as the best movie on the flight. This movie gets it right in how people and especially men and boys respond to loss and grieving. The dialog and situations are believable and the action and reactions of the loss are well founded. I particularly liked all the energy and pent up emotion that comes out with Owen and young actors Mackay (whom I mistakenly thought was the Harry Potter chap) and Nicholas McNulty as Arty. Owen is distraught and imagining his wife talking at his side as an obvious coping mechanism while equally trying to find his way with the boys - great direction by Scott Hicks who sets up scenes adapting from a novel well focusing on countenances. Recommended competent drama. Only drawback is the stubborness of Owen's character which sometimes seems forced

Mention Clive Owen, and chances are you'll think of that suave persona playing no less than roguish characters ranging from secret agents to well, erm, the go-to man if you want things done. Like Jackie Chan in The Spy Next Door, he's about to discover that the biggest challenge of his cinematic career is parenting, and in The Boys Are Back, Owen sheds his larger than life, indestructible spy characters for the role of Dad, and a complicated one too in having to reconnect with two boys from different marriages.Based on the memoirs by Simon Carr, Owen stars as Joe Warr, a British sports news reporter now living in Southern Australia with his wife Katy (Laura Fraser) and son Artie (Nicholas McAnulty). But an unforeseen tragedy forces him to rethink his priorities in life, and figure out just how to cope with bringing up a kid, having no experience when he abandoned his ex-wife and his son Harry (George MacKay) from a previous marriage. So he hatches what he thought was a brilliant plan, and that's to bring Harry to Australia, and together, as a trio, would seek out new adventures in their parent-child relationship, imposing no rules other than to listen to him when commanded should the boys get out of hand.The opening sequence would give rise to a certain expectation of how this film would play out, and little would you guess just what the beach going public was cursing at Joe for. It's this no holds barred growing up adventure that elevates this beyond just another movie with mourning and longing, where the protagonists realize that their unorthodox ways of bonding together, forging strong family ties, is just as easy and fragile as it is to be torn down.Scott Hicks doesn't sugar coat the film with saccharine sweet moments, but instead offers some real pragmatism in what one would expect in a household lacking a woman's touch. And as a male I too abhor household chores unless it's absolutely necessary, so watching how the art direction of the Warr household just brought out that smirk that the filthy pig sty, erm, isn't far off from personal experience.But it's not always just about the boys, as the narrative did offer a sneak peek into another what if moment, where budding romance with Laura (Emma Booth) was suggested at, though smartly worked on in not allowing it to overshadow the examination of the main relationships in the film about a father's attempt to connect with his sons, and them with each other. You'd wish for more given Booth's fine performance as the divorcée giving out all the right signals, only being frustrated that they're not acted upon with some degree of sincerity, with that unfair feeling of always being used.For those familiar with what Clive Owen does best in his cinematic, larger than life personae portrayed on film, this role of Joe Warr would lead you to believe the the actor certainly has dramatic chops for more serious, father roles even. With excellent tracks by Sigur Ros, The Boys Are Back is one film that manages to get under your skin and make you feel very much for the dysfunctional family trying to find its rudder in the confused world they live in.