Hope Springs (2012)

After thirty years of marriage, a middle-aged couple attends an intense, week-long counseling session to work on their relationship.

Director:

David Frankel

Writer:

Vanessa Taylor

Stars:

Meryl Streep, Tommy Lee Jones, Steve Carell

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 2 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Meryl Streep	...	Kay
Tommy Lee Jones	...	Arnold
Steve Carell	...	Doctor Feld
Jean Smart	...	Eileen, Kay's Friend
Ben Rappaport	...	Brad, Their Son
Marin Ireland	...	Molly, Their Daughter
Patch Darragh	...	Mark, Their Son-in-Law
Brett Rice	...	Vince, Arnold's Friend
Becky Ann Baker	...	Cora, The Waitress
Elisabeth Shue	...	Karen, The Bartender
Charles Techman	...	Charlie, The Docent
Danny Flaherty	...	Danny, The Bookstore Clerk (as Daniel J. Flaherty)
Damian Young	...	Mike, The Innkeeper
Mimi Rogers	...	Carol, The Neighbor
Ann Harada	...	Ann, The Happy Wife

Storyline

Kay and Arnold are a middle-aged couple whose marriage has declined until they are now sleeping in separate rooms and barely interact in any meaningful loving way. Finally, Kay has had enough and finds a book by Dr. Feld which inspires her to sign them up for the Doctor's intense week long marriage counseling session. Although Arnold sees nothing wrong with their 30 year long marriage, he reluctantly agrees to go on the expensive excursion. What follows is an insightful experience as Dr. Feld manages to help the couple understand how they have emotionally drifted apart and what they can do to reignite their passion. Even with the Doctor's advice, Kay and Arnold find that renewing their marriage's fire is a daunting challenge for them both.

---

Plot Keywords:

scene during end credits | story continued during end credits | marriage | couple | marriage counseling | 

---

Taglines:

Sometimes to keep the magic, you need to learn a few tricks.

---

Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for mature thematic content involving sexuality

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Japan]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 August 2012 (USA)

Also Known As:

Great Hope Springs

Filming Locations:

Guilford, Connecticut, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$30,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$14,650,121, 12 August 2012

Gross USA:

$63,536,011

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$114,281,051

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures, Mandate Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS Datasat Dolby Dolby Surround 7.1 Dolby Atmos

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The French movie, that Kate and Arnold see in the theater, is Le Dîner de Cons (1998), which was remade as Dinner for Schmucks (2010) starring Steve Carell, who plays Dr. Feld.

---

Goofs

Several times we see Kay making Arnold's breakfast. She fries one strip of bacon and cracks one egg into the frying pan yet there are two eggs on Arnold's plate one morning.

---

Quotes

Kay: Think you can change your marriage?
Eileen, Kay's Friend: Change your marriage? What do you mean? Like, you mostly eat in on Fridays, and then you eat out?

---

Crazy Credits

There is a scene during the end credits.

---

Connections

Referenced in Hope Springs: Inside the Perfect Movie Marriage (2012)

---

Soundtracks

Glancing Lovers
Written by Hiram Bronkelstein
Performed by Stephen Edwards (as Stephen James Edwards)
Courtesy of 5 Alarm Music

User Reviews

Hope Springs delivers just as much emotion as laughs

There are movies that come along that fall in numerous genres. The latest Hope Springs seems to be pushing the comedy but sports a story that could easily be delivering the drama so going in is already somewhat of a mystery on what to really expect. With a stellar cast of Meryl Streep, Tommy Lee Jones, and Steve Carell is there any way this film couldn't work on some level?

Hope Springs follows a married couple who have grown apart. They head out to Hope Springs to attempt to rekindle their lost spark, but with a skeptical husband reluctant to take on the treatment is there any chance of saving this marriage? This is one of those movies that actually hit the mark successfully being both a comedy and a drama. When it's funny it hit a lot of really funny, sometimes uncomfortable funny moments. These are not a bad thing, but more uncomfortable for the characters in the situation thus causing a bit for the audience. What makes this film go from something pretty average to deliver something a bit more is the cast. Jones and Streep have both great chemistry throughout the film and feel like a real couple during the problem times as well as the emotional affection ones. This is their movie to shine and the emotional roller coaster they both deliver really makes this film work. They bounce around from typical married couple to acting like teenagers in love like only someone with their talent could do. Carell does a great job playing the straight laced doctor, but really only serves as a buffer to help this story of these too move along. This does showcase another chance to show he is more than just a funny man, but just doesn't bring a whole lot to the film, but what he does works well. The story isn't anything all that new, but will easily affect any age couple in a relationship that have experienced something like this from the emotional moments to the comedic ones.

This is a memorable cute heartfelt movie that is usually saved for the younger cast, but gives it this new twist using the older couple. Jones and Streep show that they still have it in both the acting chops and the love story delivering some unexpected sexual humor that elevated this movie just out of average and into a fun worthwhile cute film.

http://www.examiner.com/movie-in-dallas/bobby-blakey