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Smashed

Mary Elizabeth Winstead is terrific as an elementary school teacher who parties in a bond of shared drunkenness with her equally wasted husband (Breaking Bad's Aaron Paul) — until one day she decides she wants to stop. What's new about this affecting, unsensationalized portrait of addiction, recovery, and consequences is the low-keyed energy of the storytelling. This is a drunk's tale by and for a generation with a high tolerance for humor in the midst of seriousness, and a low tolerance for soapiness and bulls---. It's also a project shaped by television and Internet sensibilities, with a cast of likable, TV-seasoned actors also including Parks and Recreation's Nick Offerman.—Lisa Schwarzbaum

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Image Credit: Oana Marian