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Bonneville
In theaters February 29th 2008
for some mild language and innuendo
Run Time: 93
Matt's rating - 2 out of 5
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Review by Matt Mungle
Listen to my interview with Christine Baranski
Who do we blame for the lost art of "the road trip"?
Does anyone set out to drive across country anymore?
Not for the purpose of simply getting from point A to
point B but instead to use the time on the road as a
way of rediscovery or to see things you never saw
before. To be in no hurry. What a concept. With crime
the way it is and gas prices gouging us at every turn it
is not surprising that people no longer drive for the
sake of driving. In the new film Bonneville, 3 seasoned
women take off on a journey that hopefully leads to
unexpected adventure, healing, and growth. Wow, I bet
I just lost 98% of all my male readers with that one
sentence. It's ok guys. If this were a spectacular movie
I would encourage you to hang around, but instead
you can be excused
Bonneville is about a woman, Arvilla (Jessica Lange)
who has just lost her husband and is faced with the
dilemma of honoring the will of her step-daughter
(Christine Baranski) or the last wishes of her late
husband. With no other options left she decides to
return the ashes of the deceased back to the family in
Santa Barbara from Utah. So she jumps in the '66
Bonneville with her two best friends and takes off.
Margene (Kathy Bates) is the free spirit who has gone
too long without the companionship of a man and
Carol (Joan Allen) is the strict, conservative Mormon
who tries hard to keep her vows, morals and vices in
check. Along the way they each learn about life, love
and their own personal existence. The three together
make an unlikely set of friends who help each other
break free of that which binds them.
Though labeled as a comedy/drama and sprinkled
with a few laughs I found it to be incredibly
melancholy. Just when I thought these amazing
actresses would get the chance to deeply develop
their character the scene would sort of flake out. So
although a lot happens in the film, nothing ever
happens. For one the film takes its time to tell the
story. Like a leisurely drive it is in no hurry to get to the
destination. It wants to savor the simplicity of sight and
sound along the way. That is a great concept and has
worked in past films. But not here. I never found
myself being lifted up or engaging with any of them.
And that is a shame considering the plot and
elements to work with.
Bonneville is rated PG for some mild language and
innuendo. It is a totally safe film for all ages although
most under 30 will probably find the lack of plot and
unmotivated adventure boring. This could have been
an amazing buddy film of three older women at the
peek of life discovering greatness. But it just didn't
happen. I see this film finding its way to DVD shelves
soon and a constant weekend choice on Lifetime or
WE. Not to be stereotypical but that seems to be the
best home for this flick. Unlike Fried Green Tomatoes
or Trip to Bountiful, all of which are amazing films, this
one just doesn't have enough gas to get it up to
speed. I only give Bonneville 2 out of 5 last wishes.
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Matt and Cindy are members of the North Texas
Film
Critics Association (NTFCA). For additional
reviews
and interview clips visit the website.
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Mungleshow Productions
Matt Mungle
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