Book Club
Directed by: Bill Holderman
Written by: Bill Holderman and Erin Simms
Starring: Diane Keaton, Jane Fonda, Candice Bergen, Mary Steenbergen, Andy Garcia, Don Johnson, Craig T. Nelson, Richard Dreyfuss, Alicia Silverstone, Ed Begley Jr., Wallace Shawn, Katie Aselton, Mircea Monroe
Comedy - 104 min Reviewed by Charlie Juhl on 18 May 2018
Written by: Bill Holderman and Erin Simms
Starring: Diane Keaton, Jane Fonda, Candice Bergen, Mary Steenbergen, Andy Garcia, Don Johnson, Craig T. Nelson, Richard Dreyfuss, Alicia Silverstone, Ed Begley Jr., Wallace Shawn, Katie Aselton, Mircea Monroe
Comedy - 104 min Reviewed by Charlie Juhl on 18 May 2018
When The Internship was released in 2013 about two grown men competing for Google internship slots against much younger and tech savvier competitors, the collective agreed it was about eight years too late. Mocking the open layout office and hyper-competitive whiz kids was so 2005. Therefore, watching a book club comprised of four women of a certain age dissect the Fifty Shades trilogy feels so 2013. The fad, fanaticism, and fake outrage are in the past; why resurrect such a bump in the cultural zeitgeist? I understand the elderly latch on to movies, books, and memes later than their grandchildren, but Book Club emits a certain check the box vibe of an overlooked niche Hollywood is circling back around to clean up before it moves on.
First time director Bill Holderman hit the nail on the head in the casting department. His challenge bringing four characters together and making it feel like they’ve had a 40 year friendship was formidable. Jane Fonda, Diane Keaton, Candice Bergen, and Mary Steenburgen feel like they’ve been in the same movies before. Alas, even though Book Club has a first time director and a first time co-writer, the themes are overly familiar for movies catering to the more chronologically advanced audiences. Forget society and the place it wants to pigeon-hole you in. If you believe there is more there for you out there, go and get it. Take advantage of the opportunities out there to make your life as full as you want it to be - to hell with all the haters.
First time director Bill Holderman hit the nail on the head in the casting department. His challenge bringing four characters together and making it feel like they’ve had a 40 year friendship was formidable. Jane Fonda, Diane Keaton, Candice Bergen, and Mary Steenburgen feel like they’ve been in the same movies before. Alas, even though Book Club has a first time director and a first time co-writer, the themes are overly familiar for movies catering to the more chronologically advanced audiences. Forget society and the place it wants to pigeon-hole you in. If you believe there is more there for you out there, go and get it. Take advantage of the opportunities out there to make your life as full as you want it to be - to hell with all the haters.
It’s remarkable how our four book club ladies each arrives at an emotional crossroads right when they start reading the first Fifty Shades. Diane (Diane Keaton, Finding Dory) struggles with what it means to be a parent of adult children. In an age when parenting and pressure are synonymous, Diane attempts to reacquaint herself with her previous fun, youthful, and more childlike self. A dashing airline pilot played by Andy Garcia (Passengers) displaying a swashbuckling interest in Diane doesn’t hurt her self-esteem, but Diane’s sense of responsibility is working overtime and needs a calibration. Vivian (Jane Fonda, Youth), on the other hand, is already carefree and loving it. She struggles with defense mechanisms, emotional wall building, and opening herself up to vulnerability, especially when old flame Arthur (Don Johnson, Django Unchained) strolls back into town.
Vivian hides behind her success in business. She is sex yes, love never. Sharon (Candice Bergen) is both sex and love never. Her obstacle is her own self worth. Even though Sharon is a no nonsense federal judge, she still feels there may be some juice left to squeeze even though society tells her women her age are no longer sexy and nobody out there would find her attractive. Sharon is up against a reflection which says she needs to shut it down, not kick it up in the online dating services she reluctantly begins to mine. Most of Book Club’s slapstick moments follow Sharon creating an online dating profile and meeting one or two of the prospective septuagenarian Romeos.
Finally, Carol (Mary Steenburgen, A Walk in the Woods) wants to rediscover excitement and a physical relationship with her husband, Bruce (Craig T. Nelson, Gold). This situation has the most obvious connection with the Fifty Shades subject matter; perhaps she could incorporate ideas from the ridiculous but lusty books into her plans to reignite passion. The subtext is our ability to communicate with one another. Carol must ask for what she wants. Married couples all get comfortable and complacent in our routines and forget our partners are not mind readers. Carol wants Anastasia Steele and Christian Grey to overcome her communication breakdown.
In its own generic and episodic way, Book Club is about people coming together. They share their thoughts and feelings in the same room, look each other in the eye, and as best friends are most adept at doing, encourage each other to get off their asses and go do something about their respective problems. That is true friendship - when you can lay into the ones you know best for their own good. It’s give and take, your friends will throw the criticism right back at you. However, Book Club has script problems throwing obstacles in its way. Vivian’s character arc lacks any conflict whatsoever as she learns to let her guard down around Arthur and Diane’s entire problem could be solved with one stern phone call instead of multiple plane trips to Arizona and a severe misunderstanding.
Side note - this the second time Mary Steenburgen has attracted police attention in a car while going after her husband’s man business while he is driving. She did the same thing to Steve Martin in Parenthood. Some actresses do not get this sort of Oscar bait even once in their careers.
Second side note - Don Johnson plays one of the film’s prospective paramours. His daughter, Dakota Johnson, plays Anastasia Steele in the Fifty Shades movie trilogy frequently prancing around in her altogether trying to break down Christian Grey’s defense mechanisms and wall building. It’s probably not as deep as I think it is, but it sounds meta.
Second side note - Don Johnson plays one of the film’s prospective paramours. His daughter, Dakota Johnson, plays Anastasia Steele in the Fifty Shades movie trilogy frequently prancing around in her altogether trying to break down Christian Grey’s defense mechanisms and wall building. It’s probably not as deep as I think it is, but it sounds meta.
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