* AlternateCharacterInterpretation:
** It's never said just why there's bad blood between George and Johnny. There could be a NoodleIncident that drove them apart, or just jealousy. After all, George is now successful and in Chicago, while Johnny is a dropout married to a woman he doesn't seem to care much about.
** Some people like to think that Ashley and George may have been involved at some point, due to the intimate scene they have in the hospital. Others see it as a surrogate brother/sister relationship - since Ashley never shows any jealousy of Madeleine and only wants to be friends.
** It's never explained why George doesn't allow Madeleine to come to the hospital and see Ashley [[spoiler: after her miscarriage]]. After she chose work instead of going straight to the hospital, it could be his way of punishing her for choosing work over family - as Ashley is shown to be very important to him. Or it could be because he didn't want Madeleine and Ashley to bond too much, since that might mean a reason for them to have to return again - something George is implied not to want.
** Johnny's out-of-nowhere advances on Madeleine. Does he do it as a way to hurt George? Is it because Madeleine is the only one who doesn't look down on him (Ashley although she means well can be a bit condescending towards him too)? And does this spark his HeelRealization?
** Peg's dislike of Madeleine - is it rooted in Madeleine being the one to marry her perfect son and keep him away from home? Or is it more simply them getting off on the wrong foot since Madeleine did keep mistakenly calling her Pat at first. Given that she warms to Madeleine towards the end and Eugene says she's a SugarAndIcePersonality, could she have been like that with Ashley at first too?
* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: Johnny makes a pass at Madeleine while she's helping him study. It's never mentioned again and never factors into the story at all.
* SugarWiki/FunnyMoments:
** Ashley's EstablishingCharacterMoment where she shows herself to be a MotorMouth who rattles off potential scenarios for Madeleine's visit.
---> "I'll bet she's prettier than me. I'll probably hate her. (''beat'') [[{{Squee}} I can't wait]]."
** Madeleine's client calls to the house while Ashley is having her baby shower. While she's praying with the other women, he launches into a bit of a tirade in the other room. The other women go silent, until Ashley rather awkwardly says "Amen."
* JerkassWoobie: Johnny is rather cold and dismissive towards everyone. But given that he's a BasementDweller who seems to be looked down on by his rather [[WhyCouldntYouBeDifferent indifferent mother]], it's hard not to feel sorry for him. After all, he [[spoiler: loses a baby too]].
* JustHereForGodzilla: Some don't think the film is that good, but Creator/AmyAdams's performance is near-universally praised.
* TheScrappy: Few have any love for Peg, given that she's implied to be MyBelovedSmother and appears to have favoured George over Johnny all the boys' lives. That's not to mention how cold and distant she is to Madeleine, at least until the end anyway. And there's also her little speech to George about how wonderful he is. She doesn't say anything like that to [[spoiler: the son who just lost his baby]] and could probably use her support more than George.
* TearJerker:
** Ashley [[spoiler: losing her baby]] and then breaking down in the hospital is definitely a whiplash from her previous cheerful self. It's especially said when she asks "what about all that stuff I bought?" - and you realise [[spoiler: she spent months preparing for a baby's arrival and now she'll have to get rid of it all]].
** There's also the reactions of everyone once they're back at the house. Peg sits alone at the kitchen table and abruptly starts crying, as does Madeleine outside.
* TheWoobie: Poor Ashley. At the start of the film, she appears to be something of a StepfordSmiler who is convinced that the baby will reignite her and Johnny's marriage. [[spoiler: Then she loses the baby, and has a massive breakdown in the hospital]].