The Trip to Bountiful (A- or 3.5/4 stars)
After 8 Academy Award nominations and over 30 yrs. in film, Geraldine Page finally won a well-deserved Oscar for her magnificent performance as an elderly woman desperate to get back to her childhood home in Peter Masterson's 1985 weepie, 'The Trip to Bountiful' (adapted by Horton Foote from his own play). Page rivets as Carrie Watts, an old widow in the twilight of her life trapped in a cramped Houston apartment that she shares with her hapless, hen-pecked son Ludie (John Heard) & his domineering, petty wife, Jessie Mae (Carlin Glynn). 1947 has not been a great year for this woebegone family.
Ludie feels guilt over not having enough $$ to live in a better place. Jessie can't stand her quirky mother-in-law's hymn singing or her incessant glower whenever she is criticized for ... anything. Carrie longs for a nostalgic visit to Bountiful, the rural Gulf Coast town where she grew up & then raised her family; she hasn't been back to the homestead for over 20 yrs. Ailing, aged, but spirited ... Carrie would love to get back there before she dies.
Despite her desperate requests, Carrie realizes that Ludie - concerned for her health - will never bring her home again. So with her measly pension check in hand, she escapes for the local bus depot. Thanks to the kindness of strangers, her journey isn't a complete tragedy. On the bus, she is befriended by the sweet Thelma (Rebecca DeMornay), a soldier's wife; a helpful stationmaster (Kevin Cooney) locates the purse that she left on the bus; and a thoughtful sheriff (Richard Bradford) is kind enough to drive Carrie to her beloved destination ... which is now overgrown with weeds & dilapidated.
When Ludie & Jessie eventually arrive to retrieve Carrie, they find that she has made peace with the land as it looks now, retraced her fondest memories, & comes to the conclusion that "When you've outlived your house & your family ... you've lived too long". The good part of it all is that the three of them realize that they must all be more understanding of each other. I was moved immensely by this film. Humane character development - not an abundance of plot happenstance or special effects - rules the day. It is a film about how people cope with adversity, love, death, disappointment, & also hope.
'The Trip to Bountiful' surprised me because Carrie Watts' exploits are so mundane, and yet, because she is so fully fleshed out, we become engrossed in her odyssey to 'get home one last time' and I was emotionally walloped much more so than I ever would have thought at the film's start. Geraldine Page overcame stiff competition at the Oscars from Whoopi Goldberg, Meryl Streep, Anne Bancroft & Jessica Lange; but she deserved the win. I'll never forget F. Murray Abraham announcing this to roars from the audience: "Oh -- I consider this woman the greatest actress in the English language. The winner is Geraldine Page!" 'The Trip to Bountiful' is a small film that packs a punch and, is a journey of the heart that is well worth taking.
Ludie feels guilt over not having enough $$ to live in a better place. Jessie can't stand her quirky mother-in-law's hymn singing or her incessant glower whenever she is criticized for ... anything. Carrie longs for a nostalgic visit to Bountiful, the rural Gulf Coast town where she grew up & then raised her family; she hasn't been back to the homestead for over 20 yrs. Ailing, aged, but spirited ... Carrie would love to get back there before she dies.
Despite her desperate requests, Carrie realizes that Ludie - concerned for her health - will never bring her home again. So with her measly pension check in hand, she escapes for the local bus depot. Thanks to the kindness of strangers, her journey isn't a complete tragedy. On the bus, she is befriended by the sweet Thelma (Rebecca DeMornay), a soldier's wife; a helpful stationmaster (Kevin Cooney) locates the purse that she left on the bus; and a thoughtful sheriff (Richard Bradford) is kind enough to drive Carrie to her beloved destination ... which is now overgrown with weeds & dilapidated.
When Ludie & Jessie eventually arrive to retrieve Carrie, they find that she has made peace with the land as it looks now, retraced her fondest memories, & comes to the conclusion that "When you've outlived your house & your family ... you've lived too long". The good part of it all is that the three of them realize that they must all be more understanding of each other. I was moved immensely by this film. Humane character development - not an abundance of plot happenstance or special effects - rules the day. It is a film about how people cope with adversity, love, death, disappointment, & also hope.
'The Trip to Bountiful' surprised me because Carrie Watts' exploits are so mundane, and yet, because she is so fully fleshed out, we become engrossed in her odyssey to 'get home one last time' and I was emotionally walloped much more so than I ever would have thought at the film's start. Geraldine Page overcame stiff competition at the Oscars from Whoopi Goldberg, Meryl Streep, Anne Bancroft & Jessica Lange; but she deserved the win. I'll never forget F. Murray Abraham announcing this to roars from the audience: "Oh -- I consider this woman the greatest actress in the English language. The winner is Geraldine Page!" 'The Trip to Bountiful' is a small film that packs a punch and, is a journey of the heart that is well worth taking.