Labor Day, also known as Stockholm Syndrome, is about a single depressed mother and her son who are held hostage by the nicest escaped convict ever then rediscover love and learn life lessons on a fateful three-day weekend in the 1980s. The luminous, eternally magnificent and gorgeous Kate Winslet plays the single mother. Josh Brolin plays the ruggedly hot and misunderstood escaped convict.
I lost my suspension of disbelief in Labor Day fairly early. I love Clark Gregg from the Marvel movies and TV series, but in what world could he pull Kate Winslet then dump her. I get that he is supposed to be an ordinary guy that can’t handle her PASSION, but this isn’t a CBS series. His scenes with the son are pointedly awkward and excellent, but come on, Kate Winslet. Nope.
What kind of freakish vaguely rapey fantasy movie did I stumble upon when I watched Labor Day? First the kid is an idiot and gets his mom kidnapped so his mom has to be tied up in her own damn home. Second, the kid is kind of obsessed with his mom getting some because that is all you need to snap out of post-partum depression. Third, the ex-con turns out to be the best stepfather for a long-weekend ever. He teaches him about baking and baseball, and fixes everything broken in the house, including the mother and son’s hearts. I’m not kidding. Fourth, girls and women are the villains of Labor Day. The men just can’t handle stuff and make stupid mistakes. Awwwwww. Fifth, Labor Day acknowledges how unhealthy it is for a child to feel like they have to care for a parent, but cosigns that behavior later in the movie when he gets older. No!
Thank God for pretty people and excellent actors otherwise Labor Day would be excruciating to watch. Skip it unless you must see every movie that any of the members of the Labor Day are in or dig warped love stories.