Nothing beats the lockdown blues quite like watching a good movie. A MILLION LITTLE PIECES, the film adaptation of the notorious 2003 bestseller with the same name by James Frey, is now showing on DStv Box Office and will definitely leave you with a lot to think about.
The motion picture, directed and adapted by acclaimed director Sam Taylor-Johnson, offers a realistic look at how a 23 year-old man pulls himself back from the brink of self-destruction during his time at a rehabilitation centre in Minnesota.
After waking up on a plane with a smashed up face and no memory of the past few weeks, James heads to rehab where he discovers much more than detox and therapy. As he endures the white-knuckle journey of mending his broken body, he heals his broken soul by connecting with an interesting array of kindred spirits who also yearn and fight for a better life.
While A MILLION LITTLE PIECES doesn’t hold back from displaying the harsh and horrible realities of addiction, it is not only a study of addiction, but also of recovery, love, friendship and hope.
“You don’t laugh as hard or cry as intensely as you do when you’re going through recovery,” explains the writer-director. “It was important to think about the balance of that in a way, the balance of the darkness and the light… The biggest thing I’d like is for people to come away with hope and optimism rather than despair.”
Aaron Taylor-Johnson, who also co-wrote the script, delivers a powerful performance in the lead role, which is perfectly complemented by the likes of Billy Bob Thornton, Juliette Lewis, Giovanni Ribisi, Charlie Hunnam and Odessa Young.
“Aaron Taylor-Johnson is by far the best he’s ever been in A MILLION LITTLE PIECES, rivetingly ruined, and the film doesn’t flinch: as James is subjected to anaesthesia-free root canals, alongside similar physical batterings, you wince and cringe,” writes Empire’s Alex Godfrey.
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A MILLION LITTLE PIECES is an adults-only rehab drama that is distributed locally by Filmfinity (Pty) Ltd. and is currently showing on DSTV Box Office.
Watch the trailer here: