Poster of The Savages

The Savages

Comedy, Drama

Director: Tamara Jenkins

Release Date: January 17, 2008

Where to Watch

I’ve seen too many movies. If you liked Laura Linney in You Can Count on Me, she basically reprises her role in The Savages. If the central character was Philip Seymour Hoffman’s character, and she was the supporting actor, I think that I would have loved The Savages. I know that the siblings are supposed to be emotionally damaged because of their childhood, and they exhibit that damage in different ways. I know that it is great that the movie deals with the harsh realities of death and caring for an unlovable, estranged elderly person….for a month or so and then they live better, healthier lives and are healed through this process. So they basically spent part of two seasons dealing with this problem. Oh good for them. Aren’t they precious little unique flowers. I hated Laura Linney’s character until the very end. Her brother’s assessment of her was spot on. I like flawed characters. I even like awful characters. I didn’t like this particular one so watching an entire movie about her was not my idea of a good time. I would hang out with her brother. He is my kind of person, but any character that can barely take care of a cat leaves me cold–call it the Harry and Tonto rule. Learning more about her character made me like her less. If there is a cut of The Savages that leaves Laura Linney’s character out all together, I think that I would like that film. Still love the actress, but I’d rather deal with Tea Leoni’s self-aware hot mess with not one single good characteristic from Spanglish than this self-deceiving nightmare.

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