Running with Scissors (USA, 2006)

This is a semi-autobiographical film about author Augusten Burroughs. Augusten's mother (played by Annette Benning) is a little crazy. She believes that one day she will become a great star. And she leads her life by this premise up to ridiculous extremes. On the other side, Augusten's alcoholic father does not help much keeping the family together. So his mother decides to consult Dr. Finch, a supposedly famous psychiatrist. Things actually get worse because Finch's family consists of excentric characters to say the least. In Dr. Finch's Victorian-style house, Valium is consumed almost like candy, so everyone is in his or her own world all the time. Mrs. Finch watches TV while eating dog food while her daughter plays doctor with his friends, only she uses electroshock therapy! Annette Benning plays her role extraordinarily. All characters are played with such intensity that you actually believe this happened, and it did, although it is hard to believe for some. This is a highly entertaining and original adaptation of an original novel.