the savages

part 2 of a 4 part day of film festival indulgence
the attraction with this one being 4 star ratings from david and margaret
for me a usually reliable guide to the type of films i enjoy
i'd just sat through a very impressive real life story (patti smith)
so even before the film started the fox corporation banner had me reeling
even more with the unexplained opening scenes of aged cheerleaders
but this is because we are in an aged care facility in sun city arizona
seems anything is possible including an old man having some bowel issues
he being the father of john (philip seymour hoffman) and wendy (laura linney)
they live on the east coast living their own struggling lives
she working in casual jobs, writing plays, accomodating a deceitful lover
he a bored english professor and refusing to commit to a loving polish woman
they are brought together with the need to relocate their incapacitated father
it's all a bit act by numbers stuff for these 2 experts i suspect
the first part of the film had me wondering why the rave reviews
and a sense of deja vu of a film that this one seemed to borrow from
a recall of a fine canadian film titled invasion of the barbarians
here too a man is in his final days and reconciling with his family
but frustratingly reconciliation does not take place
there's no doubt the director is no fan of nursing homes
the film is also about the 2 leads and their interaction
a quick falling back to their competitive childhood days
he the pragmatic bloke wanting to sort out his father quickly
she showing female emotion and aware of her past neglect
arguments erupt between the 2 even in the presence of their father
a deliberate and effective way of portraying the loneliness of the aged
the director also determines to introduce a theme of race
some old film footage (fox owned) shown in a nursing home
this film showing a white man applying makeup and a wig
it just so happens that most of the staff are african americans
who naturally take offence at this black and white minstrel show
but there's no development of this bad attempt at a separate theme
except to suggest that african americans make for compliant staff
even more so when one of them is singled out for special mention
he shares a few intimate moments with wendy over her cat
but he too is left in his place and left behind in the film
the cynic in me thinking i'm witnessing overbearing patronising
and so the film works it's way to the expected conclusion
the father also has enough of all this and moves on
leaving our 2 main characters to also return to their lives
though of course they are a little closer for the experience
possibly a little wiser also as each makes some life adjustments
me - well - not a lot to be taken from this film
nursing homes already give me the dreads
don't want to ever visit or live in one
thanks for the reminder