anthony lapaglia star a leo water and a chicago base architect whose domestic life be not as stable a his professional while to wit represent his eldest child and martin ( sebastian stan ) and have just drop out of college and his aimlessness lead to an unlikely assignation while his young and daughter christina ( hayden panettiere and currently on nbc hit series hero a the cheerleader impervious to pain ) and whose blossom into young womanhood be prove to be a painful event while and his wife julia ( isabella rossellini ) and a homemaker whose anal retentive disposition be masquerade some still water run deep . to add further complication and enter tonya neeley ( viola davis ) and a woman crusade for a petition to have her housing project build be tear down . convince the design be the main culprit to the tragic underpinnings of her situation and tonya elicits leo help by force him to sign her petition and figure his name will get the civic wheel in motion . leo naturally decline and since his ego in check will not recognize that this be the blame for the building plague of problem ( i. e. drug deal on the premise and general vandalism ) . but that will not stop tonya quest for closure . base on a play by david greig and a scottish playwright and novice director matt tauber ( a fellow american playwright and film producer make his debut here ) and adapt with a leaden storyline that mar a genuine plot point represent how do housing truly affect it populace . he instead set up one unlikely premise ( martin suddenly have a gay encounter while christina lamely seduce a truck driver while julia go off her nut and et al ) that serve no real pay off and lose interest in tonya plight ( it be apparent that she lose one child and while her survive off spring be so disparate they may as well be stranger ) and which should have be the central focus . while the storytelling miss it mark however the acting be on target . lapaglia and one of my favorite actor and give a complex yet sublime turn a the slightly arrogant and apparently clueless titular character . he be matched note for note by davis ( last see on screen in a small yet memorable performance in oliver stone world trade center ) and imbue tonya with dignity yet allow her inner indignation brim to the surface not unlike a sameul l. jackson character .