Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Hope Springs, screenwriter Vanessa Taylor (2012)


Okay, so I know what your thinking, since you are one of my many faithful, dedicated readers. I'm sure you're thinking "Oh gosh, [fill in my name], I can't believe that you are once again, straying away from the purpose of this blog!" Which, as you know, (being that you are so dedicated), is to write reviews of books that have been turned into Meryl Streep movies. But being the intense Meryl Streep fan that I am, I have just gone to see this new movie and I felt compelled to write down my thoughts on the matter.
But have no fear! I am currently working on two new relevant books to review. I have already finished reading Sophie's Choice and I'm nearly finished with Kramer vs. Kramer. So you, (you are out there, right? Somewhere?) can expect to be reading two new reviews that actually pertain to my original goal. So after that extremely long tangine, here we go!

I actually enjoyed Hope Springs, which seeing as I am a Streeper, you can imagine that I would enjoy a Meryl Streep movie. But in all honesty, I thought the movie itself was pretty good. In fact, I may go see it a second time. It wasn't a perfect, seamless, flawless movie for sure, but I found it quite enjoyable.
Naturally, the movie also had some awkward moments, but I suppose they are impossible to avoid especially when the entire movie centers around a older couple having marital and sexual problems. In case you are unaware of what you can expect from this movie, it's basically about an older couple that attends a week of intense couples therapy in Maine. Meryl Streep and Tommy Lee Jones star as Kay and Arnold Soames, while Steve Carell portrays their therapist.

Overall the movie had a good overall message and it was most definitely a departure from what Hollywood normally presents to its audiences. And because it was a departure from "normality", so to speak, it could have been a total failure, because as I'm sure many people know, nothing is perfect. When you are leaving anything, in this case, the realm of what is accepted in main stream culture, things can go wrong.
 But luckily, the movie was charming and cute and it spoke to some important issues that I'm sure many people must deal with in relationships. Speaking of the issues that it raised, not many main stream movies these days involve older couples as the center focus. Although last night, at the movie theater, I was outnumbered by older people, I think the Hope Springs has universal appeal because it deals with relationships and the boredom that one surely encounters as time passes. Despite the fact that I'm sure teenagers aren't lining up to see this movie, it speaks to what we all will encounter sooner or later: love, loss and forgetfulness.

Specifically, the acting in the movie was pretty good, although probably not Oscar-worthy. It was nice to see Steve Carell in a movie, although the only other work that I've seen him in is The Office, so it was strange to see him being so serious. And of course, Meryl Streep and Tommy Lee Jones were cute and they had good chemistry and all that. I didn't particularly care for the music in the movie, but I can bear with strange musical interludes as long of the rest of the movie is okay.

All in all, Hope Springs  was very cute with great acting and a well-executed theme. It did have it have its flaws and there were some areas that could have been added to or refined. But I recommend seeing the movie, except for the fact that movie tickets are so expensive! ($10, granted I forgot my student ID once again...)

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