The Savages (2007)
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: 43
Fresh: 42 | Rotten: 1
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.
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Average Rating: 3.4/5
User Ratings: 133,985
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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
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Cast
-
Laura Linney
Wendy Savage -
Philip Seymour Hoffman
Jon Savage -
Philip Bosco
Lenny Savage -
Peter Friedman
Larry -
David Zayas
Eduardo -
Gbenga Akinnagbe
Jimmy -
Cara Seymour
Kasia -
Tonye Patano
Ms. Robinson -
Guy Boyd
Bill Lachman -
Debra Monk
Nancy Lachman -
Rosemary Murphy
Doris Metzger -
Hal Blankenship
Burt -
Joan Jaffe
Lizzie -
Laura Palmer
Real Estate Agent -
Salem Ludwig
Mr. Sperry -
Sandy Daley
Attendant -
Peter Frechette
Matt -
Jennifer Lim
Manicurist -
Kristine Nielsen
Nurse -
Christopher Durham
Doctor -
Maddie Corman
Annie -
Cynthia Darlow
Nurse #2 -
Carmen Roman
Administrator -
Nancy Lenehan
Counselor -
Michael Higgins
Resident #1 -
Madeleine Lee Gilford
Resident #2 -
Tijuana Ricks
Valley View Nurse -
Margo Martindale
Roz -
Erica Berg
Woman in Parking Lot -
Michael Blackson
Howard -
Sidne Anderson
Simone -
Patti Karr
Woman With Red Pillow -
Johnny Bolton
Father in Mall Lot -
Zoe Kazan
Student -
Lee Sellars
Father -
Marianne Weems
Director -
Tobin Tyler
Valley View Nurse #2 -
Debbie Fuhrman
Physical Therapist -
Lili Liu
Manicurist #2 -
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All Critics (175) | Top Critics (46) | Fresh (152) | Rotten (18) | DVD (9)
Linney and Hoffman are both terrific, and Jenkins's script is pointed and perceptive, but the film's arc is a little flat.
Top CriticIt's billed as a comedy. You may or may not find much to laugh at.
A goo-free comedy.
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.
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.
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.
One rummages vainly through tics in search of genuine emotion
The Savages is a labored labor of love about an estranged brother and sister, who have to deal with a frail and fractious father.
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.
Jenkins fans looking for the irreverent humor of Slums need not apply.
Having the talent of Laura Linney and Philip Seymour Hoffman isn't enough.
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.
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.
This film is immensely rewarding and in its own way exceptionally beautiful.
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.
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Foreign Titles
- Die Geschwister Savage (DE)
- La familia Savages (ES)
