Review of Grandma (2015) by Mmadnessgames — 06 Mar 2019

This is a pro-choice film for pro-choice people. The question of whether or not to abort the child is never raised. The grandmother doesn't question the decision. The mother doesn't question the decision. The only question (in the film) is how to fund the abortion.

Lily Tomlin's character tries to scrounge together enough money to abort her great granddaughter. That's what the whole film is about. This is a COMEDY about funding abortion... and, of course, (since this is 2019) it is full of lesbians.

Lesbians and abortions.

Abortions and lesbians.

At one point, Tomlin's character confronts a little girl picketing outside an abortion clinic and the girl (rightly so) punches her in the face... something that her great grandchild will never be able to do.

If you're pro-choice, you'll probably like this movie.

There's no reason for the abortion. It isn't the result of rape or incest and the family can afford to raise the child. But, it's an inconvenience. So: they kill it.

The grandmother doesn't offer to raise it. The mother doesn't offer to raise it... If this was my grandchild we were talking about, I'd at least try to find a solution before killing it. The fact that they don't even have a conversation about it is appalling.

The worst moment in the film is when they go to Sam Elliot's house (a man Lily Tomlin's character abandoned in the middle of the night and aborted their baby) to borrow money for the abortion...

The grandmother and the mother are horrible people. I'm not sure if that's the point of the movie? Are we supposed to be disgusted by them?

Why go and borrow money from Sam Elliot's character? Why not just get a loan on your car, or sell some stuff at a pawn broker... It doesn't make any sense.

Tomlin marries Elliot. She gets pregnant. Then she leaves in the middle of the night and gets an abortion, never to return. She doesn't leave a note. She just sneaks out and aborts their child in the middle of the night... Then she returns four decades later to borrow money for her granddaughter's abortion. But, she lies about what the money is for.

That is SERIOUSLY horrible.

On a positive note, it might be Sam Elliot's best performance. Typically he's an impenetrable tough Western stereotype. In "Grandma", he's a vulnerable old man. I was genuinely surprised by his acting chops. The guy has range.

The girl from Ozark doesn't have any range. Her performance is barely adequate. I hope I don't see her in too many other films.

"Grandma" a well produced film and most of the acting is good. But, it just rubs me the wrong way... When a film is about killing a baby, they should probably try and discuss that in the film. This isn't a film about abortion. It's a film about funding an abortion. It might as well be a film about funding any number of medical procedures. Because - according to the film - that's all abortion is: a medical procedure.

I don't like it when films have political agendas. This film could have provided a balanced perspective. Instead, it is firmly pro-choice. There is no "to be or not to be" question. The film doesn't ask why. It doesn't explore what it feels like to terminate a pregnancy. It asks no questions. The only thing the story is concerned with is how to pay for the procedure.