Hope Springs or does it collapse? And, are The Film Fatales up
for a little couple’s counseling?
After thirty years of marriage, a middle-aged couple attends an
intense, week-long counseling session to work on their relationship. (imdb) That ain’t the half of it. (elizabeth
cassidy)
2012. PG-13 100 Minutes. Starring Meryl
Streep, Tommy Lee Jones, Steve Carell and Jean Smart. Directed by David Frankel.
elizabeth: When I told a few
friends that I wanted to see Hope Springs,
I got a lot of, “and they all live happily ever after. It’s going to be totally
predictable. Your shoes are so last year.” Oh, how wrong you are, you silly
rabbits. I got these shoes this year. In March.
And just for the record, why the hell is
this movie rated PG-13? It deals with sexually-explicit topics and no 13-year-old
wants to hear their “movie” parents talking about oral sex on the big screen.
(For the record, my mother will be banned from reading this review. She still
has a case of Dial Soap in the basement with my name on it). I was with two
friends (Nicole was home making a carrot salad) and we are from three different
generations. We all were pulled in by the well-written script, the brilliant
performances of Streep and Jones and the feeling that this is every woman and
every man’s story. This script does not insult – it educates. And we all felt a
little bit like a bunch of voyeurs.
It is a movie for adults.
Nicole: Two things. 1) It was
chicken salad; you never listen. I don’t believe your cell phone has as
terrible reception as you claim. And, 2) If this movie is for adults, then why
the hell were you there? (You gotta admit it, you left yourself wide open for
that one.)
I lied: Three things. 3) I fall into that
“movie parents talking about sex” category – and I’m well into my ‘30s. Can it,
Cassidy. Reveal my real age and you’ll need to increase the distance barrier on
that restraining order. I do agree, this movie should have been an R.
elizabeth: Oh, Please. You are just a child in
comparison to Clint Eastwood. In fact, he has chairs older than you. (I had to
go there).
This movie is about empowerment. I loved how
a rather meek woman like Streep’s Kay started to stand up for herself and
demanded what she needs in her life…and her sex life. She is really challenged
by her husband, who ignores her and fantasizes about being anywhere but in
couple counseling. Jones’ Arnold was obstinate, unmovable and scared shitless…and
heartbreaking.
But, Kay fights on for what she deserves
from a marriage and it has nada to do with the Golf Channel. Meryl Streep’s performance is like watching
the phoenix rise from the ashes, but please, couldn’t she have had a hipper
wardrobe? I know, this couple is struggling about having some really good sex
and I want Streep in Capri pants and gladiator sandals. I am having my middle
name changed to “shallow.”
Nicole: Versus what it is now?
I thought you liked elizabeth banana hammock cassidy?
elizabeth: Stop smoking crack, would ya? Steve Carell was
just fine as the therapist, but I think I might have started to have sex dreams
about him if I had to sit across from him for a week. He kept the movie flowing
and he stood his ground with Jones’ Arnold and was a champion for Kay. I am going
to find out if my insurance will cover sessions with him.
Nicole: Really, huh? That would
have been a totally different movie. Called something else. After which, I’d
have to call my therapist. And, not the Steve Carell kind.
elizabeth: I was just saying that
he had a certain charm that made him very appealing. Don’t make it sound like I saw this movie in Amsterdam’s red light
district…not that I know anything
about that place.
I have to say that it was odd to watch
two very strong and commanding actors be stripped down to the underwear and
totally vulnerable. But, in the end, isn’t that all of us when we refuse to embrace
what will make our lives sweeter? And hotter.
And before I go off to get my masters in sexuality,
I applaud director David Frankel for showing the world that you can have great sex
at all stages of your life. We are not dead, yet.
The Film Fatales give HOPE SPRINGS
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