The Savages Review

Tamara Jenkins' small film The Savages, sounds like a terribly depressing affair on paper. A struggling playwright (Laura Linney) and a frumpy Bertol Brecht scholar (Phillip Seymour Hoffman), get the word that their father is suffering from dementia and needs to be taken care of, and they fly to Arizona to do so.

And there's plenty of depressing subtext as well- Hoffman's girlfriend is being deported back to Poland on an expired Visa, Linney is having a quiet, joyless affair with a married neighbor and temping to pay the bills while getting rejected for artistic fellowships.

But there's a warm side to this film, from its naturalistic cinematography and light humor, to the patient way that it lets its story unfold.

The last name of all three major characters is "Savage," and they're constantly at each others' throats- the father in particular (Phillip Bosco), is unlikeable and rough, and Jenkins never forces him to recant his ways or apologize for anything. In one scene, while his two children are at each others' throats arguing, he simply turns down his hearing aid and ignores them, lost in his own world at the end of his life.

These Savages are cleverly contrasted with a few pets that come in and out of the story, a dog and two cats, and the simplicity of connection is illuminated by them- we love animals unconditionally, and warmly, but our feelings about other human beings are complex and hurtful. In the end, we're all animals.

The Savages reminded me of a more humanistic Woody Allen film, because it shared a similar academic New York sensibility, but it never went too far making its characters unrealistically pithy or absurd. Sometimes the film relies a little too much on embarassment for humor (like when Linney tries to help her father to the bathroom on a plane and his pants falll down), which seems unecessary when life itself can be so funny in such a three-dimensional film.

I also got the feeling that it would have benefited from teling us more of the history involved with the three of them- we know that the mother left, and the father was not really up to the task, but we get only glimpses of the childhood that's left so many marks on the two siblings.

Overall, it's a great character study, and a winning film.

When to See It: Before it Leaves theaters.

Lefotver thoughts:

• This doesn't quite puch anything off the 2007 top 20, but it's definitely top 30 material.
• Has there ever been a movie where an affair with a married man is a good idea? The longer they strung that sub plot out, the more annoying it became.
• Some really surreal shots of Sun City, AZ in the opening of this film- I don't if they made it this way or it is this way, but it appeares like a suburban fantasia for the elderly full of golf-carts on the street, water aerobics, and happy-faced mailpeople riding old fashioned bikes.
• Glad to see Laura Linney get an Oscar nomination, but Hoffman was just as good.
• Linney's cat was named "Genghis."

Charlie Wilson's War Review

Recent Mike Nichols films have a feel to them that scream, “I AM AN AWARDS CONTENDER! NOTICE ME!”

While this was a hindrance for Closer, it's an advantage – for the most part - in Charlie Wilson’s War. The movie rests on the pedigree of the actors, the screenwriter, and the
director. This foundation almost works, but the movie fails to maintain its energetic start, and the ending collapses, unable to shoulder the weight it was so desperate to carry.

The movie stars Tom Hanks in the titular role as an alcoholic, womanizing Congressman from the state of Texas. When approached by one of his contributors (Julia Roberts) – and occasionally mistresses – Hanks’ character begins to examine how to supply the Afghani rebels with munitions to fight the invading Soviet Union Army.

Hanks’ performance is believable and quite good as he steps outside of his normal everyday man routine. Similar to other actors playing against type, Hanks achieves new success in attempting this role. Assuredly, Hanks will secure another Oscar nomination for his already impressive resume.

Julia Roberts, sporting a blonde hairdo and southern drawl, makes an appearance as Wilson’s concerned constituent and mistress. Her performance as this hard driven, well-to-do woman comes across as forced at points, but works for the most part.

However, the movie’s best performance is reserved for Philip Seymour Hoffman. Hoffman, as Wilson’s top Central Intelligence Advisor on Afghanistan, is witty, energetic, and sports the best facial hair of the fall movie season. In a year of so many outstanding supporting male roles, Hoffman is one of the year’s best.

Aaron Sorkin creates two-thirds of an excellent script. The script has a strong, energetic quality to it, but that energy becomes heavy handed and evaporates by the end of the movie. Filled with numerous one-liners, the script does manage to create and maintain the charm of the three principal characters.

Mike Nichols just seems to let his actors flow together, as Hanks and Hoffman make a formidable teaming and the remainder of the characters are allowed to hop along for the ride.

A technically sound film, where the script and actors are the star allow for a fun movie, that deters away from its source material he end. Part of the reason that this deviation occurs is because Aaron Sorkin can not seem to ignore the fact that 9/11 has yet to occur.

While the book has a subtly approach to presenting the fact that this supplying of munitions lead to the eventual uprising of the Taliban, Sorkin plays it up in the script as Hoffman’s character routinely admonishes people for not having a structured plan in place one the Soviets have been chased away. This is one of the reasons that the film unwinds at the end. Hanks fun loving Congressman, with a great mission on his mind, is sidetracked by Hoffman’s admonishments. These admonishments alter the character’s identity, which make Wilson appear to be malleable as his identity was changed in the earlier portion of the film.

Though a decent film, the trust showcase here are the actors and the first two-thirds of Sorkin’s script.

When to See It: Rent It from Blockbuster (It's not good enough to see in theatres, but it is not bad enough to wait for it to appear on TNT after Shawshank Redemption and Sorkin’s superiorly constructed A Few Good Men)