“Will the Grandparents of this lost child please come up and claim her…”
From the writer who has brought us such classic love stories as HOPE FLOATS (98) and P.S. I LOVE YOU (07), comes a classic family holiday comedy/drama, filled with the trials and tribulations we all seem to face over the HOLIDAY SEASON ~ so put that smile on your face and get ready to go head first into REAL LIFE…THIS IS LOVE THE COOPERS!!
The Christmas season is upon us, and it seems that the entire COOPER CLAN is coming home for the holidays…
Married 40 years and finding that they don’t have very much in common anymore, Charlotte (Diane Keaton) and Sam (John Goodman) seem to have come to a crossroads in their relationship…and neither one is sure on which way to turn…
Charlotte convinces Sam that they need to celebrate one more Christmas together as a “HAPPY FAMILY”, so they embark upon picking up their grandkids, so they can enjoy a few family traditions together before the BIG MAN arrives…
Trying to keep his head above water as he makes the best of his new single life – yeah right ~and loosing his job ~ son Hank (Ed Helms) is trying to find a new job before his ex-wife Angie (Alex Borstein) or his parents find out his he is now officially ~ A TOTAL LOOSER…
And just arriving at the airport, and deciding to hang there for hours, instead of heading home to be judged by her mother, we meet the beautiful and totally screwed up daughter Eleanor (Olivia Wilde), who is in a relationship with a married man, but finds comfort in getting to know the military guy she just met named Joe (Jake Lacy) and who she has just invited to go home with her…
Even Grandpa (Alan Arkin) is struggling with his love life this year, as the beautiful young waitress named Ruby (Amanda Seyfried) that he visits daily, has just informed him that she is leaving to start a new life far, far away from here…
Can you say ~ ONE SCREWED UP FAMILY…but, like all families, beyond the quirks and idiosyncrasies of everyone involved, is a group of fantastic people that we all just HAVE TO LOVE…
I give LOVE THE COOPERS a rating between MUST SEE ON THE BIG SCREEN and WAIT AND CATCH THIS ONE ON DVD ~ Since I absolutely love a few of the actors in this VERY REAL CHRISTMAS Com/Dram, I was totally excited to catch the 1st Christmas release of the season. Keaton plays the same type of character we have seen from her again, and again, and again – Mom with a heart of gold, but always using her judgmental tone…But, Goodman is a little off character this time around, playing the cast aside husband, hoping for a glimpse of the woman he fell in love with to reappear before its too late ~ and Helms and Wilde are good too ~ as the son and daughter who try to be “the best they can be in their parents eyes, but always seeming to fall a little short in their own minds…” Toss in the acting prowess of Arkin, Seyfried, Tomei, and Mackey, and you have a compilation of superb actors to round out the many intertwining storylines contained in this film. And without giving too much away, don’t leave without seeing each and every frame, even if you are waiting to catch it this one on DVD, as you must catch who narrates this film…cause it makes all the difference in the world once you finally do 😉
Kathy Kaiser
MATINEE CHAT with Kathy Kaiser 