Love the Coopers

Starring: Steve Martin (voice), Diane Keaton, John Goodman, Ed Helms, Alex Borstein, Amanda Seyfried, Alan Arkin, Marisa Tomei, Olivia Wilde, Jake Lacy, June Squibb, Anthony Mackie, Timothee Chalamat, Maxwell Simkins, Blake Baumgartner
Directed by: Jessie Nelson
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Comedy
2015

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: The Coopers come back home for Christmas, but family dysfunction threatens to ruin the holiday.

Review:

Tim: It certainly feels like Love the Coopers is another somewhat interchangeable dramedy about dysfunctional families. We've gotten dozens and dozens of these over the years. Most are pretty forgettable. I wouldn't say that this film has truly managed to differentiate itself. It does feature a good cast and a fairly entertaining story. While I couldn't consider this a good movie (because it's mostly giving us more of the same without executing better), it's at least a decent viewing experience.

I think most of us know the score at this point. A big family is coming home for Christmas. There's a lot of different personalities, old baggage is brought out, conflict arises, and at the end of the day, the family grows closer together. We've seen this movie before. Now, Love the Coopers puts a few interesting twists on the same old story, but it still holds pretty true to form. I wish the movie had been a little more ambitious or adventurous.

One tactic to differentiate itself is to have the film narrated by the family dog. This gives Steve Martin a chance to impact the film without actually appearing in it. It doesn't work. It feels like a silly gimmick and adds nothing the movie. It is a distraction (why is the dog talking to us?) and felt like a cheap attempt at doing something different. I give the film a little credit for trying something different, but we deserve better than this.

The cast is certainly the biggest selling point and this movie doesn't disappoint. Not everyone gives a great performance, but it's genuinely enjoyable to see these characters interact. Diane Keaton headlines the film. It seems like she's made twenty movies exactly like this. I don't know if that contributed to her poor performance- it certainly felt like she was on autopilot here. Her performance felt forced and too over-the-top. I never believed the authenticity of her performance for a second. She's a talented actress, so I'm not sure what happened here. It felt like she was here for a paycheck and to keep working, quality be damned. John Goodman was fairly good- he's a talented actor and it seemed like he put effort into pulling this role off well. He might not have been great, but he certainly makes the movie better. I liked seeing Ed Helms in a more straight, restrained performance. It's important for him to do roles like this so he's not only doing dumb comedies. Amanda Seyfried has a few good moments, but mostly feels like an afterthought. It's weird how she nearly disappears once the whole family comes together. Alan Arkin was great- he's such a good actor and I'd watch him in dozens of roles like this. He uses his screen time very effectively. Marisa Tomei felt a little out of place with the rest of the cast. Her performance is good, but she's not utilized effectively enough. I really liked seeing Anthony Mackie in his small role and he made a surprisingly big impact with limited screen time. My favorite cast members, though, were Olivia Wilde and Jake Lacy. This shocked me, because I typically don't like Wilde that much. Their story was cute and memorable and both played their parts excellently. They had real chemistry on screen and emerged as by far the most interesting players. I wanted to see more of them on screen. They were the highlight of the film for me. With a cast this large, usually certain actors get horribly shortchanged. I didn't think that happened here. Of course, I would have liked to see more of specific people, but director Jessie Nelson juggles her big cast exceptionally well.

Love the Coopers is unfortunately a bit too interchangeable for my liking. If I watch a movie like this, I want it to tug my heartstrings and offer a memorable experience. That doesn't quite happen here. There are moments and characters that are effective, but as a whole, the movie left something to be desired. However, it's not all bad. We've seen so many of these movies, it's easy for a film to slip into oblivion. That doesn't happen here. The movie may not quite bit the winner I hoped for, but it's a decent, fairly entertaining experience. You can do far, far worse than Love the Coopers.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



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