Smashed - B

Rated R, 85 minutes

Well-acted, downbeat and familiar "Smashed"

Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Octavia Spencer

"Smashed" is "Days of Wine and Roses" updated for contemporary times. A story about an alcoholic couple and one of them attempting to get help, it's a vivid, if not depressing and low-key, look at what alcoholism does to relationships. Kate (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) and Charlie ("Breaking Bad's Aaron Paul) like to have a good time. Their marriage thrives on a shared fondness for music, laughter . . . and getting smashed. When Kate’s partying spirals into hard-core asocial behavior, compromising her job as an elementary schoolteacher, something’s got to give. But change isn’t exactly a cakewalk. Sobriety means she will have to confront the lies she’s been spinning at around her and her troubled relationships. Winstead's tour-de-force, breakout performance is the highlight of "Smashed," which strikes a familiar chord, albeit an affecting one. Directed and written by relative newcomer James Ponsoldt in his second feature film, it's realistic and efficiently told, though some of it, especially in the early-going, is a bit redundant. What makes "Smashed" memorable is its premise: two drunkards and one wants to get better, what happens then? As the other drunkard, Emmy-winner Paul is also affecting as the husband who may be Kate's real problem. Watch for "Parks and Recreation'" Nick Offerman and Oscar-winner Octavia Spencer in small roles as those trying to help Kate. This makes an interesting companion piece to this week's heavy-hitting "Flight," which explores similar issues.

Wes's Grade: B