"The Savages" (2007) - Movie Review

Phillip Seymour Hoffman needs to pin up this year as the best year for him so far. With “Before the Devil knows you’re Dead”, “Charlie Wilson’s War” and now with “The Savages”, this may be even better than his previous Oscar winning year. While “The Savages” is more about Wendy (Laura Linney), sister of Hoffman’s Jon and their dying father Lenny (Philip Bosco), Hoffman has started to be in full command in walking of the role which by now has become a branded signature of him both artistically and uniquely from one film to another.

This in no way shadows Linney who in her own trade is top in her performance. Her Wendy who is fighting the life of finding something to do on her own, a trophy for her toughness she has gone through the life is theatric for being real. A distance call from the caretakers of Lenny Savages’ girl friend from Sun City, Arizona summons the East Coast residents Wendy Savage and Jon Savage to bring in their dad. Wendy panics; Jon is calm calculative guy who knows that does not help. Both lands in the midst of taking care of their dad and we get to know from the conversations and play writing of Wendy that Lenny is not particularly a best parent. Still they feel the responsibility and guilt of Wendy’s to bring him in Buffalo where Jon works as Professor in Theatres. Both are in the age of things going not well in personal frontier and Wendy in particular is longing for recognition and lot of swing in her life.

Director Tamara Jenkins coats the screen with the shades of independent picture tone and how does it never seem clichéd. I love the style of calm disposal viewings of the atmosphere surrounding these characters. Jon in his personal hardship of saving his relationship with his Polish girl friend, Kasia (Cara Seymour) looks things for what it is. He is blunt and treats the life for its true nature. He knows they have abandoned their father and so did he. Lenny threw the towel long ago only to leave his kids with a childhood of sadness to be written a play upon. Jon has the eye for it and sees that this is the end, the last customary responsibility of being a flesh and blood kin. He is more successful in career than his sister but equally troublesome in relationship. Hoffman and Linney get these scenes of sharing a mild laugh, bantering over the situation and their own envies to deal with. In the midst of everything, Lenny, the person who is the reason for this sudden reunion, sits back and accepts in losing himself to the final surrender.

Jenkins has these scenes to place her character of whom they are and what they are dealing through in nuances of behaviour. Wendy is picky about how her dad is going to look with her during the travel from Arizona to New York and she removes the suspenders when he is in wheel chair. In the middle of flight, Lenny jumps in his usual dementia arrogance to go for the rest room. Wendy gets up and guides him holding his hand towards the rest room. Both are looking at each other and that is the first time they have real eye contact after they have met. It is followed by an event which cannot be more pricking for Wendy and Lenny with anger and helplessness everything going around in circles, everything is defined in that one scene.

While the independent tone is used which I mentioned does not look repetitive is still beautiful for its style does not take a fall on unexplained confide of these people or coming to terms with their father. The situation is used as the magnifying glass for Jon and Wendy into their crumbling shreds of happiness. They discover how to pick it up and pick themselves up. And it is not another dysfunctional family been patented for the independent movies. But why does this dysfunctional term commonly used in films? Dysfunctional as in socially destabilizing or socially not acceptable, socially unacknowledged but those are the films filled with emotions which are void in the social world. It is sad and surprising for the study of termed dysfunctional behaviour is with the system of perception. Every one is different and when different people get to start family, it is one another specific classification in their system of uniqueness. Then why do we label them with a name? Every one knows their family drives them crazy but they love them to the death. It is the craziness which is the see-saw of enjoyment in to this dysfunctional universe. “The Savages” can be called dysfunctional in those terms but a true depiction of the life we all lead.