Movies That Celebrate Female Friendship at Every Age!

[I review "The Fabulous Four," "The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat" and "Desperados," movies that remind us how important our girlfriends are!]

The Fabulous Four (2024)

Four old college friends reunite for a wedding in Key West.

Kitty (Sheryl Lee Ralph), Alice (Megan Mullally), Marilyn (Bette Midler) and Lou (Susan Sarandon) were besties in college but over the years they have grown apart.  In fact, Marilyn and Lou are estranged because of something Marilyn did to Lou years before.

Now Lou is a doctor, never married, because she "didn't need a man." Kitty is a cannabis farmer, with an overly religious daughter who thinks her mother is going to hell. Marilyn is a widow who is getting married again only a couple of months after the death of her husband of 48 years.  She is also a dingbat with an addiction to Tik Tok. And Alice is a bit of a druggie.  

Marilyn has invited Kitty and Alice to come down to Key West for her wedding and Kitty and Alice decide this is a good opportunity to get Lou and Marilyn back together.  They hatch a plan to lure Lou down to Key West by telling her she has won a raffle from the Hemingway House to win a polydactyl cat.  I know... They also think they need to do an intervention on Marilyn to get her off of Tik Tok. And speaking of which, I actually met a 75-year-old woman who was obsessed with Tik Tok, so I guess that's a thing with older women. Not that I would know anything about that.

Anyway, when the three arrive at Marilyn's house in Key West, Lou is furious at the ruse - what?  No polydactyl cat?  Lou wants to leave, but Kitty convinces her to stay and then Lou meets "Ted (Bruce Greenwood)," a handsome stranger she is attracted to and I could see where this was going a mile away. 

Written by Ann Marie Allison and Jenna Milly and directed by Jocelyn Moorhouse, silly antics ensue as the women reclaim their friendship. But at least the antics aren't cringey, well, mostly not cringey. Yes, marijuana plays a role.  For some reason, older women getting high is supposed to be funny.  Not.  I cannot stand movies about older women that make fun of older women.  The egregious "Summer Camp" is an example of that.  But though this one can be silly, it is not disrespectful.

It's good to see Bette Midler again.  I have always been a fan and no one does dingbat better than she does. Sarandon, Ralph and Mullally are all good foils for her and each other and the friendships are believable.

But speaking of cringey.  Michael Bolton has a singing cameo and I thought, "Geez, what's with Michael Bolton?  He really seems out of it." But then recently I learned he had a brain tumor so then I felt guilty about my reaction. Sorry, Michael.

Rosy the Reviewer says...though I had some issues with some of the silliness, the movie was fun, the women were interesting, believable characters and it drew me in. A satisfying story of long-term and renewed friendships. (Apple+ or for rent or purchase on Amazon Prime)

The Supremes at Earl's All-You-Can- Eat (2024)

Odette, Clarice and Barbara Jean form friendships in the 60's and weather happiness and heartbreak together over several decades.

Odette was born in a tree; Clarice had a mother who sought perfection; and Barbara Jean was born on the wrong side of town. Well, actually her mother was a stripper and rumor has it that Barbara Jean was born on stage!  But all three of these women form a bond at Earl's All-You-Can-Eat Diner, which serves as a backdrop to their lives. 

In 1968 when the girls are 18, Clarice (Abigail Achiri) is a concert-level pianist with a recording contract in the offing. Odette (Kyanna Simone) is her best friend and the two are sent over to Barbara Jean's house to leave some food for Barbara Jean (Tati Gabrielle), whose mother has just died.  When the girls realize Barbara Jean is there alone with her step-father and possibly being abused, they whisk her away to Earl's All-You-Can-Eat Diner. When the three walk in, Big Earl (Tony Winters) dubs them The Supremes because the three of them together reminded him of that famous singing group from the 60's and Big Earl is a charming guy. And when Big Earl realizes Barbara Jean's situation, he invites her to move in with him and his wife. And did I say that Big Earl was not just charming but also fatherly?

Fast forward to 1999 and Odette (Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor), Clarice (Uzo Aduba) and Barbara Jean (Sanaa Lathan) are married and still friends, but weathering life's challenges. 

Adapted from the novel by Edward Kelsey Moore by Tina Mabry and Gina Prince-Bythewood and directed by Mabry, the movie uses flashbacks and flash forwards to tell the story of these women's friendships over the years, and it's epic melodrama but of the addictive kind and the talented cast makes it all believable.  There is a teenage pregnancy, lost love, lost dreams, a cancer diagnosis, cheating, racism, alcoholism, the murder of a child, revenge, fights and reconciliation. It's all here in less than two hours - life's disappointments and tragedies made survivable because of the love and support of friends.  You will care about these women and feel grateful for your besties.  

Rosy the Reviewer says...sentimental but satisfying with a message that reminds you to love and fight for your friends. (Hulu)

Desperados (2020)

Friends Brooke, Kaylie and Wesley rush to Mexico to try to waylay a nasty email Wesley sent her boyfriend when she was drunk.

Wesley Darya (Nasim Pedrad) is kind of a mess. No, not kind of.  She is a big mess.  She is struggling to find a job and is desperate to get married and settle down but can't seem to figure out what she is doing wrong. The problem with getting married and settling down is that she doesn't even have a boyfriend.  But after a disappointing blind date with a guy named Sean (Lamorne Morris), she literally falls into the arms of handsome Jared (Robbie Amell).  Yes, she trips on the sidewalk and he picks her up. 

Wesley is so taken with Jared that she cleans up her act and, in fact, literally puts on an act to be what she thinks he wants her to be. After dating for a month, Jared and Wesley finally have sex, but when five days go by and Wesley doesn't hear from Jared, she thinks he is ghosting her. She gets drunk with her two besties, Brooke (Anna Camp) and Kaylie (Sarah Burns), and the three write an angry email to Jared telling him off. 

But then wouldn't you know, Jared does call and Wesley discovers that he was in Mexico at a resort and had a serious accident and has been in the hospital for the last five days without his computer.  Oh, noooo. What has she done? If he reads that email...  

So to save her relationship, Wesley concocts a plan.  She and her girlfriends will go down to Mexico, sneak into Jared's room at the resort and delete the email. Brooke and Kaylie reluctantly agree. I mean, that's what friends do, right?  A road trip and hijinks ensue.  Oh, and wouldn't you know.  Remember that guy, Sean, who Wesley met on that blind date?  Well, he is at the resort too and gets roped into the hijinks.

Nasim Pedrad (probably best known for her five years on "Saturday Night Live" and last seen in "Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F") is really funny in this as are Camp and Burns. Each character has a distinct personality that adds to the fun. Written by Ellen Rapoport and directed by LP, the film has a "Bridesmaids" vibe, and like that film, there are some raunchy moments.  Let's just say there is an oversexed dolphin as well as an oversexed pre-teen. 

You have to suspend disbelief for a lot of this but if you are in the mood for a silly romp and you are not easily offended, it's fun.

Rosy the Reviewer says...absolutely raunchy at times but absolutely hilarious and a good message: Boyfriends come and go but your girlfriends are forever so don't take them for granted. (Netflix)

NOW CALL YOUR GIRLFRIENDS TO TELL THEM YOU LOVE THEM AND THANK THEM FOR THEIR LOVE AND SUPPORT!!!! 

Thanks for reading!

See you next time!

If you enjoyed this post, feel free to like it and share it on Facebook, X, or other sites; email it to your friends and/or follow me on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/rosythereviewer where I share short reviews about TV shows I am watching, books I am reading and all sorts of other fun stuff that doesn't appear here!

And next time you are wondering whether or not to watch a particular film, check out my reviews on IMDB (The International Movie Database). Go to IMDB.com, find the movie you are interested in.  Scroll over to the right of the synopsis to where it says "Critics Reviews" - Click on that and if I have reviewed that film, you will find Rosy the Reviewer alphabetically on the list (NOTE:  IMDB keeps moving stuff around so if you don't find "Critics Reviews" where I am sending you, look around.  It's worth it)!

Movies Now Playing in a Living Room Near You! "Tarot," "Find Me Falling," and "Summer Camp."

[I review "Tarot (a current Top Ten Movie on Netflix)," "Find Me Falling," and "Summer Camp" - a little horror, a little romance and a little mess of a movie to avoid]

Tarot (2024)

While doing a tarot card reading, in classic horror movie mode, a group of friends unknowingly unleash evil and death.

A group of college friends - Haley (Harriet Slater), Grant (Adain Bradley), Paxton (Jacob Batalon), Paige (Avantika), Madeline (Humberly Gonzalez), Lucas (Wolfgang Novogratz), and Elise (Larsen Thompson) - rent a creepy mansion in the Catskills for Elise's birthday. Haley and Grant have recently broken up so the group distracts themselves from the tension by playing with a tarot card set they have found in the basement.

Haley does some astrological readings using the tarot cards. Elise is matched with "The High Priestess" card that predicts she will "climb the ladder of success." Well, that's good, right? Lucas gets "The Hermit." Paige is matched with "The Magician" and Paxton "The Fool." Okay, not sure what those mean.  But then Haley pulls "The Hanged Man" for Madeline and "The Devil" for Grant. Haley gets "Death." Oops.

So... this is a horror film. The typical young people in danger scenario.  I am sure you can figure out what is going to happen when these kids get back to campus. Yes, they start dying in the manner of their tarot card. If you like horror films, the fun here is who, how and when.  The "how" is particularly good.

When the kids figure out, uh, things are bad, they consult Alma (Olwen Fouere), a tarot expert they find online. I mean, when you are looking for an expert, you go online, right?  She is able to identify the cards as those belonging to an 18th century astrologer who worked for a Hungarian Count.  After telling the Count that his pregnant wife and child would die in childbirth and it came true, the Count ordered his men to kill the Astrologer's daughter which really pissed off the Astrologer, who in turn, doomed the Count and his friends to death and cursed the cards.  Oops.  Alma tells the kids they need to destroy those cards. 

So off they all go back to the mansion to destroy the tarot cards.  Not a good idea because there is more scary stuff to come, but for you squeamish folks, it's only mildly gory (I only had to put my hands over my eyes once).

Written and directed by Spenser Cohen and Anna Halberg (based on the book "Horrorscope" by Nicholas Adams) and starring a cast of talented and attractive unknown actors, this is kind of silly but it is fast-moving, stylishly done and is currently in Netflix's Top Ten Movies.  

Rosy the Reviewer says...I enjoy the occasional "gotcha" and "Don't go up there, in there, out there!" moments that horror films provide, and this film is full of them.  If you like stylish horror films, and especially if you are into tarot and astrology, you might enjoy this too.  (Netflix)

Find Me Falling (2024)

Rock star, John Allman, is licking his wounds in Cypress after his latest album bombed, and it doesn't help matters when he discovers that his remote cliffside home attracts unwanted "visitors." 

Morose John Allman (Harry Connick Jr.) is not happy to discover that his new home high on a cliff in Cypress is also a hotspot for suicides.  But, oh well, that fits his gloomy mood.  He is a musician and his latest album tanked.  He has moved to Cypress to escape and to hope no one recognizes him. That ain't gonna happen because not only is he recognized, but he runs into Sia (Agni Scott), a woman he had met in Cypress many years ago.  It just so happens that John's most famous song is about a woman he once met on a beach. And it just so happens that Sia is a single mother with a daughter, Melina (Ali Fumiko Whitney), who is also a singer.  Mmmm.

Sia and John rekindle their romance, but it is not without bumps on the beach especially when John writes a possible hit and contemplates returning to New York. In the meantime, lots of people continue to try to throw themselves over John's cliff, John gets caught up in village life, and we find out why Sia and John broke up years ago. There is also a twist that I saw miles before it was revealed (and you probably will too), but those miles you see are all over the picturesque Mediterranean location so like I always say, "It's the journey."

Harry Connick Jr. is not much of an actor, but he is a handsome guy, well-supported here by a quirky plot and interesting (sometimes quirky) actors, especially Scott, who is interesting, not quirky. I just wish there had been a bit more sexual chemistry between our two lovebirds. But the film, written and directed by Stelana Kliris, is very, very sweet, like a cupcake with frosting and then some sugar on top of that and there's nothing wrong with a little sugar. It makes you feel good.

Rosy the Reviewer says...if you are a Harry Connick Jr. fan or a fan of Hallmark Movies, you will like this.  It's a feelgood 90 minute getaway to beautiful Cypress. (Netflix)

Summer Camp (2024)

Nora (Diane Keaton), Ginny (Kathy Bates), and Mary (Alfre Woodard) have been close friends since they were children, spending every summer together at summer camp.  But life has kept them apart so when an opportunity arises to attend a summer camp reunion, they jump at the chance.

God knows I love films that showcase female friendships, and I wanted to believe that's what this movie would be, but when these kinds of movies go wrong, they go very, very wrong, especially when they are about women of a certain age.

First of all, let me say...Diane, Diane, Diane...what happened to you?  You used to be a serious actress or at least take yourself seriously.  I remember you in "The Godfather," "Reds," "Looking for Mr. Goodbar." But then along came "Annie Hall," a perfectly wonderful film, but for some reason, you have decided to embrace your Annie Hall persona in your Golden Years.  You now play a Dingbat practically every chance you get.  And you do it in real life as well right down to the way you dress.  I have never gotten over your appearances on "Ellen," when you would flutter onto the set and drink wine and fiddle-dee-dee your head off.  And that's what we have here.

So anyway, Nora, Ginny and Mary have known each other since childhood and "promised to stay best friends forever..." and now 50 years later they are getting together for a reunion at summer camp.  Ginny is a best-selling self-help author, who can't seem to help herself; Mary is a nurse who had really wanted to be a doctor but gave up her dream to marry a bad husband; and Nora is a recluse scientist, who doesn't know how to have fun.  Naturally, they all find themselves and solve their life problems after going through some wacky, slapstick stuff at camp, none of which are funny.

Written and directed by Castille Landon, what could have been a funny but heartfelt exploration of long-term female friendships was actually an exercise in bad dialogue and over-acting and not one laugh to be had.  Case in point.  Eugene Levy plays Stevie D, who we are supposed to believe is a longtime object of Nora's lust.  Nothing against Eugene Levy but kind of a stretch. And then, of course, we had to have the sex-starved older woman stereotype at play.

Ginny and Mary do a makeover on Nora so she can seduce Stevie, and I kid you not, the outfit they put her in is...wait for it... an exact replica of an Annie Hall outfit, full-skirt, wide-cinched belt and even that dumb, I mean, signature hat that Diane wears all of the time. But no surprise, really, because Diane has been dressing like that for years in real life.

I know it is not easy for women of a certain age to find work in Hollywood and they are willing to put up with stereotypical and disrespectful roles to get work, but then think about 94-year-old June Squibb recently starring in the wonderful film "Thelma." She managed to find a film that didn't make her look like an idiot.

Rosy the Reviewer says...just awful.  Can someone please find these veteran actresses a vehicle worthy of their talents?  Until then, you can skip this one (for rent or purchase on Amazon Prime, but don't bother).

Thanks for reading!

See you next time!

If you enjoyed this post, feel free to like it and share it on Facebook, X, or other sites; email it to your friends and/or follow me on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/rosythereviewer where I share short reviews about TV shows I am watching, books I am reading and all sorts of other fun stuff that doesn't appear here!

And next time you are wondering whether or not to watch a particular film, check out my reviews on IMDB (The International Movie Database). Go to IMDB.com, find the movie you are interested in.  Scroll over to the right of the synopsis to where it says "Critics Reviews" - Click on that and if I have reviewed that film, you will find Rosy the Reviewer alphabetically on the list (NOTE:  IMDB keeps moving stuff around so if you don't find "Critics Reviews" where I am sending you, look around.  It's worth it)!