Review of Ricki and the Flash (2015) by Patrick L — 07 May 2016

"Streep seems to be having a blast here but the movie itself is a letdown. "Ricki and the Flash" is a major disappointment from director Jonathan Demme and screenwriter Diablo Cody".

DVD Movie Review: Ricki and the Flash.

Date Viewed: December 7 2015.

Directed By Jonathan Demme (Married to the Mob, The Silence of the Lambs, Philadelphia,.

The Manchurian Candidate, Beloved and Rachel Getting Married).

Written By Diablo Cody.

Starring: Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline, Mamie Gummer, Audra McDonald, Sebastian Stan,.

Rick Springfield, Ben Platt, Charlotte Rae and Rick Rosas.

I am definitely not the audience for this movie. Sure, it's a girly, rock-and-roll movie but "Ricki and the Flash" stars the great Meryl Streep, it was written by Diablo Cody (Juno) and it was directed by Jonathan Demme (The Silence of the Lambs, Philadelphia, Rachel Getting Married). Streep seems to be having a lot of fun in this role but the movie itself is cliched and predictable.

Women who are over the age of 50 will have a great time with this movie but to me it's a major disappointment from Streep, Demme and Cody.

Ricki Rendazzo (Streep) pursued her dreams of becoming a famous rock star by leaving her family behind. When her ex-husband, Pete (Kevin Kline) asks her to visit to Indianapolis, she becomes reluctant to go because her children want nothing to do with her. Ricki's daughter, Julie (Mamie Gummer, who is Streep's real-life daughter) is going through a tough time right now, her husband has cheated on her and he is asking for a divorce.

Finally given a chance to redeem herself for past mistakes, Ricki decides to spend some quality time with her daughter. When Ricki's two sons come to visit, they become hostile and are not in the mood to get into a fight with their mother. The eldest son, Joshua (Sebastian Stan) is about to get married while the other son, Adam (Nick Westrate) is gay. Despite having an estranged relationship with her children, Ricki hopes to put the pieces together and make her family whole again.

"Ricki and the Flash" is a surprisingly light movie from Jonathan Demme. He's usually into dark and dramatic material like "Silence of the Lambs", "Philadelphia" and "Rachel Getting Married". This film is a change of form for Demme but "Ricki and the Flash" is not one of his best. This movie also marks a reunion between Streep and Kline, they previously shared the screen together in 1982's "Sophie's Choice".

Meryl Streep makes a really good rock singer but "Ricki and the Flash" is a big letdown and it will not earn Streep another Oscar nomination.