Movie Review: Hope Springs

Plot: After thirty years of marriage, Kay (Meryl Streep) feels as if her marriage has hit a plateau. Much to Arnold’s (Tommy Lee Jones) displeasure, they set off on a week-long intensive marriage counseling session to see if there is anything left worth saving.

Last summer one film came and took me by surprise, and that was Crazy, Stupid, Love. I didn’t see a lot of promotion for it and I went into it with low expectations. Hope Springs is hands down this year’s Crazy, Stupid, Love.
Hope Springs works on so many levels. Obviously you can’t get much more A-list, star power than 17 time Academy Award nominee and three time winner Meryl Streep and three time Academy Award nominee and one time winner Tommy Lee Jones. These two are where it’s at if you need a good drama, but to knock it out of the park like they did in a comedy…..kudos.

I think this film is an important one because we live in a country where the divorce rate is over FIFTY percent. That’s devastating. And while that statistic is devastating, another sad fact is after 30 years of marriage, many fade into nothing more than two people coexisting in a house with little to discuss and even less affection shown. Hope Springs does a wonderful job tackling this issue.
Obviously with these two, the performances are spot on. Meryl Streep plays Kay who is desperate for love, conversation and affection from her husband. She is miserable in her life because she is miserable in her marriage. Your heart really goes out to her because she tries so hard to grab the attention of her husband.

Jones’ character is the exact opposite. Arnold is stubborn, hard headed and oblivious to any signs his wife tries to throw his way. He has a robotic schedule that consists of the same events every day. Upon Kay’s proposal to leave town and attend a week long marriage counseling session, he laughs the idea off. Upon arriving, he nags and complains the entire time as old men do. Jones’ performance in the film is hysterical. I know men just like him and director David Frankel does a fantastic job getting a great comedic performance from him.

Steve Carrell also stars in the film as their therapist, Dr. Feld. After watching the film it occurred to me that Carrell needs to give up his comedic roles and focus on more serious ones. As I watch Little Miss Sunshine, Dan In Real Life, Crazy, Stupid, Love and Hope Springs, I think about what a great actor he is. But then I watch Date Night, Evan Almighty, Get Smart and Dinner for Schmucks, I think that the guy is terrible. He once again gives a great performance in the film as he does in all of his dramatic roles he has taken, and I truly believe the guy has an Oscar performance in him if he gets the right role.

If I asked you who David Frankel was, you more than likely wouldn’t know, but I think he will soon be a sought after director. Frankel has had numerous hits with; The Devil Wears Prada, Marley & Me and the HIGHLY overlooked and underrated film The Big Year. If I have to sit through a chick flick, I want them to be worth my time. So far both of his has been worth it as well as his other two films. I hope he can keep the streak going.

While Hope Springs is hilarious with strong performances, it still can’t get away from a typical chick flick formula. Towards the end it does draw out and dip down into a little too much sappiness. It’s a predictable formula, but it doesn’t get too bad.

Hope Springs showed me what I don’t want my marriage to become and is perfect for any married couple whether it’s of thirty years, fifteen years or six months.

Final Verdict: 8/10