Review of Grandma (2015) by Ken D — 11 Sep 2015

For a comedy-drama, Grandma is a movie that's more drama than comedy. It's a solid movie, though, as it succeeds in its drama and does well enough in its comedy. This is basically The Lily Tomlin Show, and she does strong work here.

All of the performances work as well, but it's actually Chris Weitz's sensitive direction that makes Grandma a carefully navigated indie that makes for an entertaining and brief character study.

Since this movie is so brief--it's only 78 minutes--there isn't a ton to say about this. What I will say is that as a drama, Grandma works really well. It studies Lily Tomlin's character through her interactions with others, whether it's with an ex or a random person in a coffee shop.

Even the young girl played by Julie Gardner is more peripheral, and that's because this is Lily Tomlin's movie. Drama comes from conversations and discussions instead of ridiculous things happening; the ridiculous things are the comic relief of the film.

It's actually the humor that works less than the comedy, though, and that's why Grandma is more of a drama than it is a comedy. It's not just that the drama is more prominent, but the comedy is more or less one-note.

I love sarcasm as much as the next misanthrope, but Tomlin's shtick here is pretty much her just getting pissed and telling people off. There's more to her character, or course, but in terms of its humor, that's pretty much it.

I would say that it's more amusing than funny, and the humor isn't totally able to withstand even its 78-minute runtime, but the humor doesn't feel like it's dragging an otherwise brilliant movie down.

Grandma may not be perfect, but its flaws are somewhat fitting. Like the titular character, the film is acerbic at times, has a heart, and is kind of messy. The movie mostly hinges on its acting and directing--mostly the latter--because its handling of its themes and respect for its characters is so precise.

Even with its flaws, it's enjoyable without being disposable. 7.7/10, solid, one thumb up, above average, etc.