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Overview

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The Savages, 2007

Starring: Laura Linney, Philip Seymour Hoffman

Directed by: Tamara Jenkins

Written by: Tamara Jenkins

Language: English, German, Cantonese

Country: USA

Runtime: 114 min

MPAA Rating: R

Rating:7.3

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Profile of The Savages

The mood of The Savages is clever, contemplative, and witty. The plot centers around a family in crisis, family problems, and parents and children. It is a drama, independent, and comedy movie. In approach, The Savages is realistic. The pacing is slow. The setting is Arizona and New York. The Savages happens in contemporary times. Note that it includes profanity.

Summary of The Savages

Director Tamara Jenkins made audiences sit for nearly a decade for her follow-up to the hilarious dark comedy SLUMS OF BEVERLY HILLS, but it's been worth the wait. Like her previous film, THE SAVAGES is a sometimes-funny, sometimes-sad look at family dynamics, but this time around the sense of humor is more wry than riotous. Laura Linney and Philip Seymour Hoffman play Wendy and Jon Savage, a pair of siblings on the cusp of middle age. She's earning money in New York City as a temp as she writes an autobiographical play about their childhood, while he lives in Buffalo, teaching college and finishing a book on Bertolt Brecht. Their estranged father (Philip Bosco) lives across the country, but the Savages reluctantly rush to see him when they learn that he may not be able to take care of himself any longer. Jon and Wendy bicker over problems old and new as they try to figure out what's best for a man they barely know.

Like Noah Baumbach in THE SQUID AND THE WHALE and MARGOT AT THE WEDDING, writer-director Jenkins knows how to mine family dysfunction for both comedy and drama. Jon and Wendy tear into each other as only people connected by blood can, but their fighting feels entirely genuine, largely thanks to the performances of Linney and Hoffman. Though they'll get most of the buzz for their roles, character actor Bosco is heartbreaking as their aging father. Though his decline is difficult to watch, the actor's performance is absolutely mesmerizing.

Details

Language:	English, German, Cantonese
Country:	USA
Release date:	19 January 2007
Runtime:	114 min

Cast and Crew See all

Laura Linney

as Wendy Savage

Philip Seymour Hoffman

as Jon Savage

Photos See all

The Savages (2007)

Clips See all

The Savages: Official Trailer

The Savages: Pull the plug

The Savages: You're an idiot

The Savages: The point is

Critics Reviews See all

Variety

Jenkins brings a rigor, intelligence and eye for the slightly absurd to the proceedings that is instantly disarming. Full Review

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by: Todd McCarthy

Time

I wouldn't call the film inspirational -- it is too well observed to succumb to easy sentiment -- but its realism is patiently engaging and subtly insinuating. And Linney and Hoffman are extraordinary. Full Review

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by: Richard Schickel

Users Reviews See all

04.August.2010
|
by: Dan Cassavaugh
Dan Cassavaugh rated this movie0/10

The Savages is one of those rare films that isn't well known, but those who do know it, love it. There is a magnificent scene near the end of the film where Jon (Philip Seymour Hoffman), a professor, is explaining to his class the difference between dramatic and epic theater. Dramatic theater relies on emotion, while epic theater makes you think. The beauty of The Savages is that it does both. This movie is so devastatingly powerful, it's almost unbearable. That's the point, and why those that dare venture into it will be rewarded with a magnificent epic dramatic comedy. Jon and Wendy Savage(Laura Linney) are two highly educated, pretentious, career driven siblings in their late 30s. They're mother is absent and their father is living with his girlfriend in a retirement community. The girlfriend dies and now Lenny Savage (Philip Bosco) needs living assistance and the help of John and Wendy. The need to come together as a family allows each to evaluate their lives, their childhood, and come to grips with the inevitable death of their father. Family is the strongest bond, no matter how degrading and verbally abusive a parent can be. We see it repeatedly and hear about children coming back to a miserable parent, because what else are they going to do? Guilt is the second most powerful emotion to love in The Savages. Each scene has such crushing truth that we can't help but be drawn in. If we haven't had these same things happen to our families, we certainly know someone who has. The Savages is personal, deep and sincere. At first we laugh, we enjoy the faux pas, but then the levity vanishes, and we start to question what we would do. Are you Jon? Are you Wendy? Do we worry about careers, sibling rivalries? How do we handle the stress of a family crisis? Would you want your kids to be like Wendy and Jon? Are they already? Five stars.

04.August.2010
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by: Dan Cassavaugh

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If you look for honesty portrayed in film, you can't do much better than The Savages. This is an example of the type of film that rarely sees the light of day, simply because it refuses to compromise. Despite it's grim subject matter, there is... Read and rate it

20.March.2009
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by: sethdellinger
sethdellinger rated this movie0/10

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