Finding myself with nothing to do on Halloween night, after a lovely afternoon at Baker Beach, I checked out this film on its final screening at the Balboa: it made for a good escape from the madding crowds.
I thoroughly enjoy Nicole Holofcener's movies, especially the relationship she has developed with Catherine Keener, who plays the hapless protagonist in her earlier films. Here she has given Julia Louis-Dreyfus that role, with excellent results. She has written a sympathetic character, who feels insecure in her own judgments, always seeking input on even the most trivial matters from women (and girls) whose judgment she values more highly than her own; we as the audience get to watch the results as they happen, which is kind of like watching a very slow velocity train wreck, and is pleasantly excruciating. The performances all around are excellent, with James Gandolfini taking the laurels, but solid support from Toni Collette and Catherine Keener, and the three young actors who play the three teenage girls.
I thoroughly enjoy Nicole Holofcener's movies, especially the relationship she has developed with Catherine Keener, who plays the hapless protagonist in her earlier films. Here she has given Julia Louis-Dreyfus that role, with excellent results. She has written a sympathetic character, who feels insecure in her own judgments, always seeking input on even the most trivial matters from women (and girls) whose judgment she values more highly than her own; we as the audience get to watch the results as they happen, which is kind of like watching a very slow velocity train wreck, and is pleasantly excruciating. The performances all around are excellent, with James Gandolfini taking the laurels, but solid support from Toni Collette and Catherine Keener, and the three young actors who play the three teenage girls.