Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Jerry Stiller | ... | Sam | |
Anne Meara | ... | Molly | |
Mark Ruffalo | ... | Joel | |
Jane Adams | ... | Ruthie | |
Missy Yager | ... | Sharon | |
Paul Benedict | ... | Milo | |
Doris Roberts | ... | Frieda | |
Louis Zorich | ... | Morris | |
Phyllis Newman | ... | Sylvia Rosen | |
Val Avery | ... | Abe | |
Bob Dishy | ... | Lou Moskowitz | |
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Jonathan Hogan | ... | Eldon Krantz |
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Rose Arrick | ... | Rose |
Pamela Gray | ... | Tracy Laughlin | |
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Mordecai Lawner | ... | Bernie |
Sam (Jerry Stiller) and Molly (Anne Meara) are a classic bickering old couple, and their marriage has been forty years of sparring. Yet, when Sam refuses to move the carp he's keeping in their spare bathroom, Molly becomes fed up and unexpectedly leaves. Molly moves in with their grown son and starts dating an old friend. The couple's daughter convinces Sam to try to win his wife back and rediscover his own sense of romance.
This movie will not appeal to young people who think their grandparents are dinosaurs and their lives don't matter a bit. But, for all those beyond puberty you will enjoy this sweet, sensitive movie about getting old and being married. It moves at a slower pace than a younger audience can handle. The music is from the 40's and sets the tone of the piece as a bevy of excellent older character actors go through the emotions of a long time couple looking back at their lives and wondering if they are happily married after all these years.
I think this movie should be required watching for anyone getting married. The children from the family also look at their own lives as they watch what their parents are going through and wonder, should they also be re considering their own situation.
I watched this to see some real old pros at work again together and I was not disappointed. I haven't seen Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara (Ben Stiller's parents for those that don't remember them) together in many years. Add in the wonderful Doris Roberts and the then young upcoming actor Mark Ruffalo and you have a nice round cast. If you decide to watch it without high expectations you will have a nice surprise.