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The Savages (2007)

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All Critics
Top Critics

Average Rating: 7.5/10
Reviews Counted: 167
Fresh: 149 | Rotten: 18

Thanks to a tender, funny script from director Tamara Jenkins, and fine performances from Philip Seymour Hoffman and Laura Linney, this film delivers a nuanced, beautifully three-dimensional look at the struggles and comforts of family bonds.

Average Rating: 7.8/10
Critic Reviews: 38
Fresh: 37 | Rotten: 1

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Movie Info

A pair of siblings are forced to set aside their discomfort with one another for the sake of their father in this low-key comedy drama from writer/director Tamara Jenkins. Wendy Savage (Laura Linney) is a struggling playwright living in New York City who works a day job to support herself and can't shake the feeling that she's failed as an artist. Wendy isn't especially happy about her love life either, gaining little self-esteem from her on-and-off affair with oversexed, married neighbor Larry

R, 1 hr. 53 min.

Drama, Comedy

Directed By: Tamara Jenkins

Written By: Tamara Jenkins

In Theaters: Nov 28, 2007 Wide

On DVD: Apr 22, 2008

Box Office:$6.4M

Fox Searchlight Pictures

Linney and Hoffman are both terrific, and Jenkins's script is pointed and perceptive, but the film's arc is a little flat.

September 22, 2008 Full Review Source: New Republic

| Comment

Christopher Orr

New Republic

Top Critic

It's billed as a comedy. You may or may not find much to laugh at.

February 7, 2008 Full Review Source: Film.com

| Comments (7)

Jonathan F. Richards

Film.com

Top Critic

Powerful, painful and yet unerringly funny as it points out our emotional and physical vulnerabilities, this is a film that finds the humor in tragedy while keeping both omnipresent.

December 26, 2007 Full Review Source: Detroit News

| Comment

Tom Long

Detroit News

Top Critic

The Savages not only boasts Oscar-worthy performances from Philip Seymour Hoffman and Laura Linney as a self-absorbed brother and sister, its attention to detail makes it sweetly funny and genuine.

December 26, 2007 Full Review Source: Detroit Free Press

| Comment

John Monaghan

Detroit Free Press

Top Critic

The film is savagely funny about the indignities of old age, yet optimistic that it's never too late to have a happy childhood.

December 26, 2007 Full Review Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune

| Comment

Colin Covert

Minneapolis Star Tribune

Top Critic

Tamara Jenkins' 'The Savages': Laura Linney, The Most Overlooked Great Gctress of Her Generation, Soars with Authenticity

December 25, 2007 Full Review Source: Passionate Moviegoer

| Comment

Joe Baltake

Passionate Moviegoer

Top Critic

We could say that The Savages is a social-problem drama about senile dementia and nursing homes, but that's a little like saying The 400 Blows is about school truancy.

April 28, 2011 Full Review Source: East Bay Express

| Comment

Kelly Vance

East Bay Express

One rummages vainly through tics in search of genuine emotion

August 27, 2009 Full Review Source: CinePassion

| Comment

Fernando F. Croce

CinePassion

The Savages is a labored labor of love about an estranged brother and sister, who have to deal with a frail and fractious father.

February 2, 2009 Full Review Source: Fayetteville Free Weekly

| Comment

Tony Macklin

Fayetteville Free Weekly

Exploring ground laid out many times before, The Savages is at times frustrating and at times emotional film that could have used a re-write.

September 30, 2008 Full Review Source: Oscar Guy

| Comment

Wesley Lovell

Oscar Guy

Jenkins fans looking for the irreverent humor of Slums need not apply.

September 8, 2008 Full Review Source: ReelzChannel.com

| Comment

Heather Huntington

ReelzChannel.com Source: ReelzChannel.com

Having the talent of Laura Linney and Philip Seymour Hoffman isn't enough.

September 4, 2008 Full Review Source: The Scorecard Review

| Comment

Jeff Bayer

The Scorecard Review

It could have been shortened a bit, I didn't think the material was enough for almost two hours, but if you enjoy dramedy's like SIDEWAYS, give it a try.

August 22, 2008 Full Review | Comment

Austin Kennedy

Sin Magazine

Tamara Jenkins's film tackles the difficult subject of facing up to an ageing parent's mental and physical demise with overt sensitivity but no punches are spared.

July 18, 2008 Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile

| Comment

Urban Cinefile Critics

Urban Cinefile

This film is immensely rewarding and in its own way exceptionally beautiful.

July 18, 2008 Full Review Source: At the Movies (Australia)

| Comment

Margaret Pomeranz

At the Movies (Australia)

Oddly being marketed as a comedy by its distributor, The Savages is best approached as a drama with an intermittently light touch that's generally more of a curse than a boon.

June 9, 2008 Full Review Source: Paste Magazine

| Comment (1)

Robert Davis

Paste Magazine

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Audience Reviews for The Savages

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Even with a father with dementia, I could not connect with the story or the characters.

June 27, 2011

Thomas Johnston

Super Reviewer

Having not experienced any of director Tamara Jenkins' films before, I went into this film expecting something along the lines of "Little Miss Sunshine" in it's supposedly humourous take on a dysfunctional family. That's not what I got but there was still plenty to enjoy from the emotionally impaired characters. As

April 10, 2011

Mark Walker

Super Reviewer

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