At the Theater- Hope Springs - It's an often hilarious and surprisingly intelligent Dramedy featuring truly outstanding performances from Tommy Lee Jones and Meryl Streep. The duo are golden as a married couple of 31 years looking to rekindle their stalled relationship by attending a week-long counseling session hosted by a prominent therapist (Steve Carrell). It's one of the better written and directed comedies of the last decade, rich in character development and smart enough to let a couple of screen legends do what they do best.
Jones and Streep each deserve some high acclaim for their performances here- we should hear quite a bit about them with this upcoming awards season. The give and take between the two during their sessions runs the gamut of emotions- it's rare that older actors have such an opportunity to work with solid material in high-profile theatrical films. It's a sign of the times and that's a true shame.
Steve Carrell is rather subdued here- it's appropriate for the role and proves without a doubt that he's far, far more talented than most other comedic actors working today. Elizabeth Shue (still very sexy) makes a painfully brief but poignant appearance as a bartendress while Mimi Rogers has a cameo of less than 10 seconds.
It's Highly Recommended and is my current Drama/Comedy pick of the year- It's touching and resonant and would make a great companion piece to films like It's Complicated and Something's Got To Give.
For those interested, there's no good reason not to see it.
8.5 out of 10
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