Hope Springs (2012)

“If you want to go to intensive couples counselling all by yourself, I’ll see you when you get back.” – Arnold

Number of Times Seen – 1 (18 May 2020)

Brief Synopsis – After wanting more from her marriage after 31 years, a woman takes her unwilling husband to an intense week long therapy session that could possibly save their marriage.

My Take on it – This is yet another film that I came across by accident and knew absolutely nothing about it besides the fact that it stars three very talented actors.

Tommy Lee Jones and Meryl Streep are both superb in this film and help make the story seem even more genuine and realistic the whole way through.

The movie mixes together comedic and dramatic moments that helps keep things enjoyable throughout because this helps establish a lighter tone the whole way through.

This also adds so much to the way that we see the story and the characters because things are quite fluid.

There are unfortunately a few scenes that feel a bit too slow and drawn out and hurts the pacing of things a bit especially when they seem to rehash aspects of the story that were already established and dealt with earlier.

Perhaps they were left in the final cut because it helps show the monotonous life that these characters lead.

Really liked the way that the film stays focused n the relationship of these characters instead of spending too much time developing other aspects of their lives like their children or work.

Both of these aspects are mentioned but not developed in a deeper way which is just fine.

There are also a few scenes in the movie that seem to contradict one another and that raises a few too many questions about the progress of the plot and whether we are really being told the whole truth about things.

Steve Carell is excellent here in an integral and important supporting role and one again is able to show how great a dramatic actor he can be when given the right material.

His ability to hold his own in scenes opposite Streep and Jones is even further proof of his talent as a dramatic actor.

Bottom Line – Very realistic portrayal of a long time marriage that works so well due to the performances of Streep and Jones. The story plays out quite well and I really enjoyed the way that they manage to mix drama and humor together along the way because it adds so much to the story and characters. There are a few scenes that are drawn out a bit too much and seem to rehash things that were mentioned and dealt with previously, but it might have been kept in the finished cut in order to help show the repetition and monotony of their lives. The film does a nice job of focusing on the relationship between the characters and they don’t dwell on the other aspects of their lives like children and work which are touched upon but not deeply developed. There are also a few scenes that seem to contradict themselves which also causes the viewer to wonder what is meant to be the truth and what isn’t. Carell excels in a small yet integral supporting role and once again is able to show ow great a dramatic actor he can be especially when he needs to hold his own against these two very talented dramatic actors. Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – The French movie, that Kate and Arnold see in the theater, is Le Dîner de Cons (1998), which was remade as Dinner for Schmucks (2010) starring Steve Carell, who plays Dr. Feld. (From IMDB)

Rating – Globe Worthy (7/10)