There are two types of trauma that affect our body, physical and emotional. Each one has its own unique ramifications on how they are handled. When a bone gets broken in the body, there are ways it gets repaired which usually are visible to everyone as it slowly heals. I remember as a kid when someone would get their arm or leg in a cast it was like a badge of honor. They would have all their friends sign the cast and the goofier the message the better. You would have thought I had found the proverbial pot of gold at the end of the rainbow when I had found at the local discount store a pen that had gold ink. I thought it was the coolest thing as I would print my messages out in extra large letters. As for emotional trauma, the body usually handles it in such a way that a bystander may not even know something is going on. Emotional trauma cannot only last longer in a person it can do more damage. It can feel as if the person has been trapped in a dilapidated house with unusable windows, where pieces or chunks of wall are dropping on them periodically as a reminder of their pain.    JENNIFER Aniston (We’re the Millers, The Bounty Hunter) played lawyer Claire Bennett, a woman suffering with severe pain. When Nina Collins, played by Anna Kendrick (Pitch Perfect, Into the Woods), a member from Claire’s chronic pain support group committed suicide, Claire began an unusual fixation on Nina’s former life and the life of her widower Roy, played by Sam Worthington (Avatar, Man on a Ledge). This film festival winning drama was all about Jennifer. I have to give her credit for stretching her acting skills to undertake this role. She was excellent to the point that there were times I was cringing along with her as she dealt with her pain. The relationship she had with her housekeeper Silvana, played by Adriana Barraza (Thor, Drag Me to Hell), was especially interesting to watch throughout the film. With Jennifer doing such a good job of acting, it was disappointing the script was not stronger to support her. There were parts of the story that were flat. Also, I do not think it helped having Jennifer’s back story getting revealed in a piecemeal way; some viewers would find it annoying. I think if the writers would not have kept this story in its simplified form it would have been more interesting overall. Based on her performance it was apparent Jennifer was tapping into some traumatic memories, but I am not sure movie goers would feel her pain.

2 1/2 stars