The Savages

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The Savages ★★★½ 2007 (R)

The Savages are a highly dysfunctional family consisting of middle-aged siblings Wendy (Linney) and Jon (Hoffman) as well as their aging father Lenny (Bosco), who still lives in his recently deceased girlfriend's condo in Sun City, Arizona. After years of estrangement, two phone calls bring to light Lenny's advancing dementia, which reunites the three as they return Lenny to Buffalo. This task is complicated by the predictable but hilarious neuroses of the selfabsorbed sibs. Writer/director Tamara Jenkins has taken the pathetic inevitability of midlife and shines a light on all of the ridiculous humor that bubbles up through the cracks. A wholly worthwhile viewing experience. 113m/C DVD . US Laura Linney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Philip Bosco, Peter Friedman, Cara Seymour; D: Tamara Jenkins; W: Tamara Jenkins; C: W. Mott Hupfel III; M: Stephen Trask. Ind. Spirit '08: Actor (Hoffman), Screenplay.