Director Sam Mendes is only as good as his script.  He’s got a good eye for compelling visuals and works well with actors, but overall his skill is in knowing how to fully inhabit a genre.  However, he never manages to leave his own mark on that genre and his work feels, as a result, generic.  It’s a major drawback when he’s working with a script like “Revolutionary Road” and produces a film that feels like fifth-rate Douglas Sirk melodrama, but with Dave Eggers and Vendela Vida’s warm, outrageous, and gentle script for “Away We Go”, Mendes takes his biggest weakness and uses it to keep the film steady when the script begins throwing the audience for some emotional loops.

Opening on June 5^th is director Sam Mendes new movie “Away We Go”. Since all reviews are under embargo for a few more weeks, I need to be careful what I say.

However, I don’t think anyone at Focus Features will mind me saying that I loved the movie. Loved. “Away We Go” has a brilliant script, beautiful cinematography, great acting, and Sam Mendes directed this thing to perfection. While the film isn’t some big budget summer extravaganza, it’s a film absolutely worth checking out when it gets released. Especially if you’re in your twenties or thirties and still trying to figure life out.

Anyway, to help promote the film, we’ve been given 5 clips from the movie and the trailer, so check them out after the jump.