Review of Ricki and the Flash (2015) by Dean B — 23 Aug 2015
Amiable, sitcom-my family drama with Meryl Streep obviously having a high old time playing against type as a Tea Party rocker (!) who ditched her family years earlier but must now reconcile with her ex-husband (a sadly underused Kevin Kline) and her alienated children (including real-life daughter Mamie Gummer) when her daughter is dumped.
It's too slick and tidy to feel like a real Jonathan Demme movie, or "Rachel Getting Married" (which shares some DNA with this), despite a few sharp lines ("I only get one dream?" Streep inquires archly at one point).
It's not bad, but it feels as if it needed another rewrite--and fifteen more minutes--to achieve deeper levels of truth. Audra McDonald is sadly wasted except for one terrific scene opposite Streep, and modeling a swoon-worthy green dress in the final scenes.
What would this movie have been like with Michelle Pfeiffer as an ornery Los Angeles ex-punk? Nervier, and better.
This review of Ricki and the Flash (2015) was written by Dean B on 23 Aug 2015.
Ricki and the Flash has generally received mixed reviews.
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