I Smile Back

"Love desperately, live recklessly."

2015 1h 25m EN

😐

6.1

MID

★6.1TMDB · 130

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Laney is an attractive, intelligent suburban wife and devoted mother of two adorable children. She has the perfect husband who plays basketball with the kids in the driveway, a pristine house, and a shiny SUV for carting the children to their next activity. However, just beneath the façade lie depression and disillusionment that send her careening into a secret world of reckless compulsion. Only very real danger will force her to face the painful root of her destructiveness and its crumbling effect on those she loves.

“Love desperately, live recklessly.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Sarah Silverman
Laney Brooks
Josh Charles
Bruce Brooks
Thomas Sadoski
Donny
Skylar Gaertner
Eli Brooks
Chris Sarandon
Roger
Terry Kinney
Dr. Page
Mia Barron
Susan
Shayne Coleman
Janey Brooks

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Adam Salky
Writers: Amy Koppelman, Paige Dylan
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

85 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $0.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 13% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 11 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Adam Salky, shot by Eric Lin. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Zack Ryan. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Tamara Meem shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Sarah Silverman and Josh Charles and Thomas Sadoski carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Adam Salky directs. Eric Lin behind the camera. Zack Ryan scores. Tamara Meem cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

185 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
2Shot for just $0.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
3Earned back only 13% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
4Released 11 years ago.
5Directed by Adam Salky, shot by Eric Lin. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Zack Ryan. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor Tamara Meem shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Sarah Silverman and Josh Charles and Thomas Sadoski carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "Love desperately, live recklessly.".
10IMDB entry: tt3640682 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Eric Lin
Original score: Zack Ryan
Editing: Tamara Meem
Production design: Brandon Tonner-Connolly
Costume design: Cathryn Hunt
Runtime: 85 min · 1h 25m
Status: Released
Budget: $495,000
Box office: $63,373
Return: 13% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: I Smile Back (2015)

Also by

Adam Salky

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

Reno2016-08-18
★ 7/10
How should an ideal mother behave when she's haunted by her bad past. The film is about a small family of two little kids and their parents, but all the focus was on the mother who is a drug addict and struggling with mental illness, yet care a lot for her children. But how long this happy family stays that way is the film going to reveal in its entire narration. Based on the book of the same name, half a million budget film, has a decent cast who have given their best for it. This is not a film you watch to enjoy, but a film about the families around us. This is a depiction of the real world story, like not all the families are happier as we see them from the outside. There are some secrets in them, which sets a bad example for their own children once they come to know the true nature of their parents. But some would decide to fight hard to make everything come back to the normal and some won't. That is where film derives, how it all ends makes this film unique from the other similar ones. I think this film was decent with an important topic. Not everyone would end up happy with their watch, because the story won't end up as they thought. The novel was written by a woman, so this is a woman's perspective tale and quite neatly told story. Not a bad direction or the screenplay, surprising the production quality was too good. Seems it is a quite family type film for involving kids, certainly the theme was very strong, so definitely for adults only. It is neither worth nor a waste of time, only if you come across to it and has no other choice, you can give it try. 6.5/10

Production companies