There were a couple–okay, multiple times in this movie where I felt bored out of my mind. You know. Check your phone in your purse, check your watch, look at the audience kind of bored out of your mind. It wouldn’t be fair of me to say that this is a bad movie even though I happened to be bored out of my mind at times, because I just simply don’t fit the demographic audience this movie pertains to! When I got bored, I tried to think of how I would find this movie entertaining. Looking around the audience, I was at least forty years younger than everyone in there. I decide to pretend I was a seventy-two year old woman, then I was thoroughly engaged and found the movie not only entertaining, but also enjoyable!

The fact of the matter is, this is a movie for your parents. Actually probably for your grandparents. Old people are people too, and you know what, they need some movies featuring humans of their age group just as much as the younglings do. This is not a movie for the typical block-buster movie age group of males ages 18-34 (which is actually the audience that all movies that are supposed to make a ton of money are targeted towards). And that’s fine and dandy…if you’re a part of the baby boomer generation.

Kay (Meryl Streep) is frustrated in her marriage and doesn’t feel like her husband Arnold (Tommy Lee Jones) loves her anymore. Desperate, she goes to a bookstore and ends up finding a book by a very wise marriage therapist Dr. Feld (Steve Carell). She bravely makes an appointment for a week long therapy session with Dr. Feld, much to Arnold’s dismay. They have a challenging experience with the therapy; Arnold is so reluctant to do it he refuses to talk during the sessions.

Meryl Streep and Tommy Lee Jones steal the show. Their performances as older folks in a troubled marriage couldn’t be more accurate. I think Tommy Lee Jones was playing everyone’s grumpy grandfather, and Meryl Streep was playing everyone’s nice grandma. So if you want to see people that remind you of your grandparents, go see Hope Springs.

The humor in this movie was very dry and sparse. There were a lot of repetitive scenes, but everyone around me in the theater seemed to be enjoying themselves. Meryl Streep’s character is so genuine and likeable, you can’t help but root for her, even if you’re not over sixty. This movie is cute, well-made, and has a good cast. If you’re game for all three plus older human beings, go watch it!

Synopsis:

After thirty years of marriage, a middle-aged couple attends an intense counseling weekend to decide the fate of their marriage.