I’m not much of a Meryl Streep fan. Now, before you start sending me nastigrams, let me just mention that the first movie I ever saw of hers was Sophie’s Choice. Now I dare you to argue with me.
It always seemed to me that the movies she did were major downers. Once her career was secure she decided to do comedy. Wow! That went over big; can we say, “Mamma Mia.” In case you hadn’t noticed, that was a tongue-in-cheek comment.
Well, I can truly say that after Hope Springs, I am a Meryl Streep fan. I was always a Tommy Lee Jones fan, which is why I even watched Hope Springs, but this movie had me from the very beginning.
Kay and Arnold have been married, well, forever. When they had their adult kids over to celebrate their 31st anniversary, their daughter asks what they got each other. Kay hesitates and then says, “We got each other a cable subscription, (Meryl Streep pause) lots of channels.” We, the audience, are starting the get the picture. Separate bedrooms, perfunctory conversations, pecks on the cheek, lots of sports channels; these two people are just living in the same house.
Kay decides she wants more. She reads a book by renowned marriage therapist, Dr. Bernie Feld (Steve Carell) called, You Can Have the Marriage You Want and she wants more. She contacts the good doctor and books a week of intensive couple’s therapy. The only problem is she may be going alone. She pays for the therapy, buys the airline tickets to Great Hope Springs and tells Arnold that she wants him to join her. He holds out until the very last minute. The plane is ready to take off and he plops down next to her with his plane ticket between his teeth and says, “I hope you’re happy.” Not a great start!
The acting is wonderful in Hope Springs. It’s honest, frank and so very real. The pain of breathing life into a marriage that barely has a heartbeat is gut wrenching. Their amazing body language is so very funny that even though the subject of intimacy is no laughing matter, I found myself, at times, doubled over. At other times, I was unconsciously mirroring their actions; Kay buttoning and unbuttoning her sweater, Arnold crossing his legs away from her, turning his body.
Part of me wants to go on telling you about this delightful movie but I don’t want to spoil it for you. I do want to encourage you to rent it (I think I will buy it!). Why, because whether it’s now or 30 years from now, you’re probably going to find yourself in a variation of this situation. Intimacy is a hard thing to achieve but it is even more difficult to keep alive. Once in a while I see an older couple that just connect; they touch, they look at each other with not just love but a bit of desire. I’ll just repeat the words of the renowned Dr. Feld, “it’s not about being a sex object, it’s about pleasing the man you love and letting him please you.”
Hope Springs brings a lot of grown-up laughs and a thoughtful look at mature relationships. So, this is not a family movie. It is definitely a couple’s movie. I challenge you: fix a nice dinner and settle in for a night of fun and hopefully afterwards, conversation.
I am always open for comments at chastings@rockcliff.com.
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