The Savages

After the overwhelming inventiveness of 'I'm Not There', it was probably inevitable that 'The Savages' would prove a bit of a disappointment. Only a bit, mind. It is a brilliantly-acted film - what else would you expect from Philip Seymour Hoffman and Laura Linney - well-scripted, carefully made, and full of warmth, insight and humour about its subject: two dysfuntional siblings (Hoffman and Linney) brought together to care for their estranged, abusive father, who is suffering from dementia. It works a treat, it is enjoyable and thought-provoking from beginning to end, and much funnier than you'd expect, given the subject matter. It's just, well, not all that surprising; it perfectly fits of the mold of a superior American Indie movie without pushing any of the boundaries. A film like this reminds you that Indie can be a genre like any other. Can quirky still be quirky if it's quirky in such a specifically-designated way? Probably not. And yet, if you like the Indie genre you'll really enjoy this film, because it does everything as well as can be. Just not more. Never mind; writer-director Tamara Jenkins (a woman! a woman director! several hundred cheers!) is pretty inexperienced and on this evidence she has it in her to get better and better and better. Let's just hope for a few more risks next time.