THE MEDDLER
SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS D: Lorene Scafaria U.S. 100 min. Sep 15, 4:45 pm Isabel Bader Sep 19, 8 pm Winter Garden. See listings. Rating: NNN
Writer/director Scafaria avoids the pitfalls of making doting mother Marnie (Susan Sarandon) ridiculous by writing a smart script in which mom is so far out of control – befriending her Apple service guy, taking on the role of wedding planner for a bride she barely knows, calling her kid 20 times a day – that the film’s more funny than outright mocking.
Rose Byrne plays her daughter with all the right exasperation and J.K. Simmons – playing a nice guy for a change – is onboard as an ex-cop who’s drawn to Marnie. But the piece doesn’t work without Sarandon’s fine performance – sometimes nuanced, sometimes over the top – as a woman trying to fill up her life with extraneous people so she doesn’t have to deal with her grief over the death of her husband.
The Meddler feels a tad schematic, and nothing about the ending is very surprising. But the witty script make the piece very entertaining.