Hello! Welcome to the FREE Monday newsletter where I give you my unsolicited movie recommendations! This week, we’re delving into the wild, wild world of senior citizens doing crimes. Enjoy!
Thelma
I’m a sucker for any movie about a grandmother, but I thought Thelma really hit all the right buttons. Funny and sweet, melancholy and poignant – and not just about the prospect of aging, or the loneliness that so many at the end of their lives have to face. What struck me most about Thelma was how much it had to say about getting older at any point in your life, whether that be when you’re 93 or 23. No one ever really knows how to handle those big milestones, no matter how many you’ve hit in the past.
P.S. This comes out in theaters June 21. Get out there and support June Squibb and Richard Roundtree, icons of our time!
Going in Style
Three senior pals decide to get together and rob a bank wearing Groucho Marx Halloween masks. Sounds pretty funny, right? But while Going in Style has its fair amount of laughs, it feels more like slice of life cinema than anything else – and touches every aspect of life, no matter how devastating. It’s one of the more interesting crime caper movies I’ve ever seen, with wildly drastic tonal changes and long periods of time where you’re doing nothing more than watching a couple of guys gamble, or feed the pigeons, or whatever else it is old guys do with their time. I don’t know if it’s the best movie I’ve ever seen, but it’s certainly got a lot more to say than you might think at the outset.
Thanks for reading! See you Friday with my answers to the AMA questions!
Back in '79 I took a friend to see GOING IN STYLE, and we purchased those nose / mustache glasses and wore them when we stood in line. NO ONE GOT IT. Embarrassing. Loved the movie. Indeed, a lot more going on than one expected. Three icons.
Seeing this movie reminded me of how much I appreciated Art Carney's talent as an actor. Strassberg is a brilliant actor and teacher. And what can I say about George Burns that hasn't been said ad infanauseum. A great ensemble cast with immense collective experience. And, as someone who is a senior, I am directed back to a song I learned back in 1968. It's called Hello In There, and written by my friend John Prine. The chorus:
You know that old trees just grow stronger
Old rivers grow wilder every day
But old people just grow lonely
Waiting for someone to say
Hello In There, Hello.
As a senior, I am so happy to have younger friends, many of whom are far more talented than I. And what's the hardest part for me is to know that John passed in 2020. We were the same age, separated by 19 days. We first met in 1968 at the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago. 52 years later, we lost John. I appreciated Angel From Montgomery as a tribute from F&F.
Thanks for your reviews and the music you share!