Susan Sarandon is largely considered one of the finest screen actresses around, but, typically for actors her age (70 this year) she very rarely gets the roles her talent deserves. It is great then, that she had the lead part in writer / director Lorene Scafaria’s new movie, and she really makes the most of her chance to show what she can do.
She plays Marnie, a lifelong New Jersey resident, who, after the death of her husband has moved to Los Angeles where her TV writer daughter (Lori, Rose Byrne) also lives. In many ways, she is a clichéd character, a typically overbearing mother, getting too involved in Lori’s life. But thanks to Scafaria’s sharp script and a terrific performance by Sarandon, the character feels fresh.
Billed as a comedy, but feeling more like an emotional drama with amusing moments, this is a film that purrs along nicely in mostly a feelgood way. It is full of believable characters and situations. The best of which are between Marnie and retired cop, Zipper, played by the wonderful JK Simmons, channelling Sam Elliott! It is great to see a romance between two grown-up, fleshed-out characters, without any contrivances or supposedly cute situations. It reminded me of James Gandolfini and Julia Louis-Dreyfus in Nicole Holofcener’s ‘Enough Said’. This film doesn’t quite reach the heights of that one, and there are unnecessary parts – such as Marnie’s return to New York – but, on the whole it is well observed and witty.
Rating: 8 out of 10