Fox Searchlight, 2007, 113 minutes
To view the trailer, go here
Academy Award nominee, 2008
Even though my favorite film of the New Year is called The Savages, let me assure you the title does not refer to any of the three animals (one dog, two cats) who appear in the film. Which doesn't mean that they don't have significant parts to play in the film, because, hoo-boy, do they ever.
It's hard to review this film - especially the most dog-intensive parts of it - without spoiling it. The Savages are actually Jon and Wendy Savage, middle-aged siblings who must gather their wits and their compassion to care for their aging, abusive father Lenny (played by a vanity-free Philip Bosco when he develops vascular dementia.
Jon, played by Philip Seymour Hoffman, is a numbly rational theatre professor who won't marry his Polish girlfriend, even though he loves her, and her visa has expired. Actress Laura Linney, Oscar-nominated for this film, makes Wendy a compulsively lying playwright who, if she put the energy into her plays that she puts into her falsehoods, might become a major talent. And Dad, frankly, is a jerk. This is not a Hallmark special.
If you have ever cared for an aging, ailing, parent, there are parts of this film that will feel so realistic, your bones will ache from exhaustion. And even if you haven't, you will be glad to know that writer-director-Oscar-nominee Tamara Jenkins, a Guggenheim fellow, brings regular and welcome comic relief with the subplots of this story, especially Wendy's half-hearted affair with Larry (Peter Friedman), a balding, married theatre director who lives in Wendy's apartment building.
Which is where the dog so memorably comes in.
Cheating Larry uses his walks with his aging Golden Retriever Marley to cover his quickies with Wendy. Sometimes the real romantic connection appears to be between Wendy and Marley…even though Wendy owns a smug little girl cat named Genghis. (Since this site is not called FetchCat, you'll have to look elsewhere for details about Genghis, but suffice it to say that she sure lives up to her name.)
This schmaltz-free movie builds to a quiet emotional wallop, and animals have a lot to do with it - so go, go, go. All dog lovers: Do not leave until the film is completely over. You will thank me.
| Presence of dogs: |   |
| Respect for dogs: | |
| Canine star quality: | |
| Family friendly: | |
 |
Home |
About |
Help |
Order Tracking |
Careers |
Contact Us |
Request a Catalog |
Terms and Conditions |
Privacy Policy
