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Review:
 One
can always expect greatness from Cutis Hanson. He's one of the few
directors to have batted a thousand in the last decade. I was
somewhat scared that a chick flick about lost grandmothers might
be a little to fluffy for his sensibilities, but his and writer
Susannah Grant's adaptation of Jennifer Weiner's novel is just
about perfect.
This tale of wicked stepmothers, long-lost grandmothers and
redemption centers around Maggie Feller (Cameron Diaz) and her
sister Rose (Toni Collette). The sisters are the exact opposites
of one another. Rose is a successful in business and unsuccessful
in love, and Maggie can't seem to get a job, but men fall at her
feet. Rose is honest, Maggie's a thief. The things that unite them
are love of their father(Ken Howard) and hate for their wicked
stepmother (Candice Azzara). When Maggie gets thrown out of her
parents' house yet again, she hunkered down on Rose's couch, which
doesn't help matters much, especially, when she's caught screwing
Rose's first possible boyfriend in many years.
So Rose kicks Maggie out as well, and while returning briefly to
Dad's place to rob it, she discovers evidence of a grandmother she
thought long dead, and decides to go to Florida to sponge off HER
for a while.
With everything established to the filmmaker's satisfaction, we go
to the second and this world is ripped to shreds. Rose goes on a
“leave of absence” from her job and becomes a dog walker and
Maggie begins to get to know her new grandmother, Ella(Shirley
MacLaine).
Much of the rest of the movie is about happy seniors and the
sister's change of life. Ella forces Maggie to get a job at the
old age home, and the latter begins to thrive. She meets a blind
professor(Norman Lloyd) at her job, who helps her solve the
problem that's been holding her back and Rose finds love with a
former coworker(Mark Feuerstein). But the shattered relationship
between the sisters is an unspoken sore point, and it's up to Ella
to make it right.
Yeah, this is a chick flick, but that's not necessarily a bad
thing. Guys will find this totally painless to sit through, and
the ladies will absolutely adore it. It's a perfect date film. Go.
Eric Lurio
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