Kay (Meryl Streep) and Arnold (Tommy Lee Jones) are an older married couple. Their kids have married and left home, and now it's just the two of them. Arnold is perfecly happy with their routine. Kay serves him the same breakfast every morning (she puts the plate down right as he's sitting at the table), he reads the paper, then goes to work. She doesn't eat with him, and they don't talk. At night, he falls asleep watching golf, she turns off the TV, and they go up to their separate bedrooms.
Kay is very unhappy with this arrangement, but she doesn't know how to tell Arnold. Eventually she pays for a week of intense marriage counseling sessions with Dr. Bernie Feld (Steve Carell). Arnold hates this idea, since their marriage is fine as far as he can tell. But he reluctantly agrees to go with Kay.
The sessions start out very uncomfortable. It doesn't take much time for Dr. Feld to ask them about their sex life, which is the last thing Arnold wants to talk about. Obviously they haven't had sex in a long time, and Kay is desperately hoping they can bring the spark back into their marriage.
Meryl Streep is great as usual, but the real standout performance is Tommy Lee Jones. He seems to play similar characters so often that it's nice to see him show some real emotion. As the therapy progresses we learn that he is hurting as much as Kay, but he puts the blame on her and has learned to live with the way things are. There are some real good moments where we see just how much Arnold is hurting.
It's also a nice change of pace for Steve Carell. He usually plays in comedies, and it's nice to see he can handle a dramatic role just as easily.
The therapy sessions seem authentic. There are times where Kay or Arnold get upset and storm out of the office, and anyone who has been in a long term relationship will probably find something to relate to here. It's interesting how people who love each other so much can misinterpret something the other person does and hold a grudge for many years. If Kay and Arnold had been able to talk these things through years ago, they could have saved themselves years of pain.
This movie is probably not for young people. I'm sure there are some young moviegoers who can't even imagine couples of that age being sexual. And there is some frank and honest sexual dialogue that may make some people uncomfortable. It's not a movie to watch with your kids, parents, or grandparents. Just something to keep in mind before you take mom to see that new Meryl Streep movie.
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