David O'ConnellThe Savages
August 4th 2008 05:08
It’s been so long since Tamara Jenkins’ debut, Slums of Beverly Hills, that it’s been relegated to the status of almost forgotten gem of the ‘90’s. Thankfully an equally memorable follow-up project has finally come to fruition in the shape of The Savages, a moving and insightful portrait of a slightly dysfunctional family which thankfully doesn’t resort to parody, instead straddling the lines between humor and pathos with strong, believable characterizations and moments of genuine poignancy.
It hasn’t hurt Jenkins’ film that she was able to attract two of the finest actors of the last decade, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Laura Linney, to star as siblings Jon and Wendy Savage, who’ve drifted apart after surviving a tumultuous childhood which saw them abandoned by their father Lenny (Philip Bosco).
Jon has a doctorate in philosophy and is labouriously engaged in writing a book on the work of Bertolt Brecht, whilst denying the reality of his relationship with the Polish woman he loves.
Wendy finds occasional work as an office temp whilst turning to her greatest passion in the interim – a new play. Her only major relationship is a mostly physical one with an older married man in her apartment building.
Now requiring special care and in the early stages of dementia, it’s Lenny’s inability to look after himself that draws the family together again out of necessity. He’s been hospitalized after an “incident” (involving his own waste matter - don't ask!) with his home care nurse, and Jon and Wendy are dragged to the picturesque, but creepily idyllic Sun City retirement resort in Arizona.
The film charts not only the pair’s quest to find consolation and direction in their own rambling, unfulfilled lives, but to find an appropriate nursing home for their ailing father who they have only a minimal emotional attachment to, participating in this bothersome, annoying quest more out of a sense of family duty than anything else.
These not entirely sympathetic characters are both given depth however by two formidable actors at the peak of their powers as they struggle with the unwanted demands of their father’s deteriorating mental health and the painful association of memories it dredges up – whilst at the same time trying to find themselves and a fresh direction for their stagnant lives.
For Hoffman it’s yet another noteworthy portrayal in a quality film. He’s such a brilliant actor, there’s nothing surprising any more about how consistently good he is. The exact same could be said for Linney too of course, after a string of similarly fine, but distinctly different roles in films like You Can Count on Me, Kinsey, The Squid and the Whale, and Mystic River.
Bosco is fine as Lenny but the implied coldness of his character's past makes it hard to feel anything approaching empathy for him.
The best supporting role belongs to Gbenga Akinnagbe as Jimmy, the Nigerian male nurse in Lenny's nursing home in the second half of the film.
Let’s hope we don’t have to wait another decade for Jenkins’ third feature length film. There’s a real maturity in her writing for The Savages (which was rewarded with an Oscar nomination), with a painful sense of truth evoked, her control of the subject matter and her characters never wavering.
It hasn’t hurt Jenkins’ film that she was able to attract two of the finest actors of the last decade, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Laura Linney, to star as siblings Jon and Wendy Savage, who’ve drifted apart after surviving a tumultuous childhood which saw them abandoned by their father Lenny (Philip Bosco).
Jon and Wendy Savage
Jon has a doctorate in philosophy and is labouriously engaged in writing a book on the work of Bertolt Brecht, whilst denying the reality of his relationship with the Polish woman he loves.
Wendy finds occasional work as an office temp whilst turning to her greatest passion in the interim – a new play. Her only major relationship is a mostly physical one with an older married man in her apartment building.
Now requiring special care and in the early stages of dementia, it’s Lenny’s inability to look after himself that draws the family together again out of necessity. He’s been hospitalized after an “incident” (involving his own waste matter - don't ask!) with his home care nurse, and Jon and Wendy are dragged to the picturesque, but creepily idyllic Sun City retirement resort in Arizona.
The film charts not only the pair’s quest to find consolation and direction in their own rambling, unfulfilled lives, but to find an appropriate nursing home for their ailing father who they have only a minimal emotional attachment to, participating in this bothersome, annoying quest more out of a sense of family duty than anything else.
Finding a new home for Lenny becomes tedious and painful for the siblings
These not entirely sympathetic characters are both given depth however by two formidable actors at the peak of their powers as they struggle with the unwanted demands of their father’s deteriorating mental health and the painful association of memories it dredges up – whilst at the same time trying to find themselves and a fresh direction for their stagnant lives.
For Hoffman it’s yet another noteworthy portrayal in a quality film. He’s such a brilliant actor, there’s nothing surprising any more about how consistently good he is. The exact same could be said for Linney too of course, after a string of similarly fine, but distinctly different roles in films like You Can Count on Me, Kinsey, The Squid and the Whale, and Mystic River.
Bosco is fine as Lenny but the implied coldness of his character's past makes it hard to feel anything approaching empathy for him.
The best supporting role belongs to Gbenga Akinnagbe as Jimmy, the Nigerian male nurse in Lenny's nursing home in the second half of the film.
Let’s hope we don’t have to wait another decade for Jenkins’ third feature length film. There’s a real maturity in her writing for The Savages (which was rewarded with an Oscar nomination), with a painful sense of truth evoked, her control of the subject matter and her characters never wavering.
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Comment by Tracy
Movies and Life
Interesting review, it was great to hear your opinion. I have my eye on this one, might see it soon.
Tracy
Comment by Jason King
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Comment by David O'Connell
Screen Fanatic