The Savages gets brutally honest

In theaters Friday: Speed Racer, What Happens in Vegas…
New on DVD: First Sunday, I’m Not There, P.S. I Love You

Okay, so Iron Man did gangbusters at the box office over the weekend, and fans of the Filter may be saying: “We told you so!” in response to last week’s edition where I kind of bashed the movie. I’m sure it will continue to do well financially (I never said it wouldn’t), but I’m still completely uninterested in seeing it. And I like Robert Downey Jr. Maybe I’m the one who’s messed up. So I’m asking you to leave feedback below. Give me your best reason for me to see Iron Man. Maybe one of you will convince me. While everyone was geeking out about Iron Man last weekend, I was nerded up over this. That’s right, the first extended preview for The Dark Knight debuted in front of Iron Man and is online here. I like this trailer because it focuses on District Attorney Harvey Dent and the Joker. Heath Ledger’s performance is looking as whacked out and unpredictable as the early clips hinted. I love the different voices he uses just in the trailer. Compare the way he says “A year ago these, uh, cops and lawyers wouldn’t dare cross any of you. What happened?” in a nerdy, sarcastic voice with the way he says “This city needs a better class of criminal, and I’m gonna give it to ’em. I’ll show ya” in a crazy-go-lucky tone. He’s simultaneously entertaining and scary, and that’s how the Joker should be.

I rented The Savages last weekend. The trailer suckered me in with some Spoon and a few good gags. But instead of a wistful, downbeat comedy like About Schmidt or The Darjeeling Limited, this turned out to be a fairly heady drama. There are a handful of laughs, but of course the largest slice of a story about two siblings deciding what to do with their ailing, estranged father has to be dramatic. Otherwise the film wouldn’t be about family. It would be about one-liners.

Laura Linney and Philip Seymour Hoffman star as a brother and sister who are jolted out of their own missed opportunities and poor decisions by their father’s sudden onset of dementia. As they weigh how to best care for him, their already brittle relationship is tested again and again. The film is a bold look at something most of us will have to face one day as our parents age. Though much of modern culture waves its arms and distracts us from the fact, people die. And one day the people who raised us and took care of us will no longer be able to care for themselves. The Savages faces this struggle, and has the guts to address it with honesty. Writer-director Tamara Jenkins comes of ages with this film, and cinematographer Mott Hupfel’s palette and framing are exceptional.

I’ll be headed to Best Buy for my copy of I’m Not There today. I’ll have a full report on the special features and review of The Diving Bell & The Butterfly next week.