The Savages

D: Tamara Jenkins

Fox Searchlight / This Is That / Ad Hominem / Lone Star / Cooper’s Town (Ted Hope, Anne Carey & Erica Westheimer)

US 2007

113 mins

Drama/Comedy

W: Tamara Jenkins

DP: Mott Hupfel

Ed: Brian A. Kates

Mus: Stephen Trask

Laura Linney (Wendy Savage), Philip Seymour Hoffman (Jon Savage), Philip Bosco (Lenny Savage), Peter Friedman (Larry), Guy Boyd (Bill Lachman), Debra Monk (Nancy Lachman)

The Savages stars Laura Linney and Philip Seymour Hoffman as a pair of estranged siblings who have become emotionally distant over the years, putting their differences aside to care for their ailing father, who is suffering from dementia.

The script from Tamara Jenkins is full of believable dialogue and characters, and handles a bittersweet subject without feeling mawkish or overly sentimental.

The two leads are both excellent, especially Laura Linney, who was deservedly rewarded with a Best Actress Oscar nomination.

7/10