The Meddler

When it comes to the genre of comedy, I definitely lean more toward the powder dry type of comedy to sustain my laughs. I prefer good writing and dialogue over 'toilet humor' and frat falls to keep my attention as the storyline unfolds. There have been some good ones along the way: "Thank You For Smoking", "State and Main", "Only When I Laugh", "Little Miss Sunshine" to mention a few. Now we have yet another one of those comedies set before us in the form of "The Meddler".

With a new iPhone, an apartment near the Grove, and a bank account left to her by her beloved late husband, Marnie Minervini (Susan Sarandon) has happily relocated from New Jersey to Los Angeles to be near her daughter Lori (Rose Byrne), a successful (but still single) screenwriter, and smother her with motherly love. But when the dozens of texts, unexpected visits, and conversations dominated by unsolicited advice force Lori to draw strict personal boundaries, Marnie finds ways to channel her eternal optimism and forceful generosity to change the lives of others, including Jillian (Cecily Strong), a friend of Lori's and the young man who sold and taught her how to use the iPhone she bought, Freddy (Jerrod Carmichael). She subsequently strives to change her own life and soon meets Randy Zipper (J.K. Simmons) whom she hopes she will find a new purpose in life with. 

Others to round out the cast are Jason Ritter as Jacob, ex-boyfriend of Lori's, Michael McKean as Mark, Lucy Punch as Emily, Sarah Baker as Elaine, Billy Magnussen as Ben, Amy Landecker as Diane and Casey Wilson as Trish.

This was subtly and deftly directed by Lorene Scafaria ("Seeking a Friend for the End of the World" '12) plus TV. Truly this filmmaker doesn't have a mammoth of directing experience to her credit, however the approach she took in showcasing the realness of these dysfunctional characters was amazing considering her limited resume. Sarandon's Marnie went from sarcastic to poignant effortlessly which is talented directing, not to mention that Sarandon's acting is phenomenal. It was wonderfully written by Scafaria as well. Again she does have a bit more experience in this category than that of directing ("Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist" '08, "Seeking a Friend for the End of the World" '12), this script still soared. Even though there were a couple of very small slow places in this, it surely was not enough to impede on the effectiveness of this storyline. With this caliber of a filmmaker in our midst, I'm extremely curious to see what she will create for us to view next. And with comedies, by and large, going at the wayside--quality wise, I certainly yearn for more creative comedies out there to sink my teeth into as with this one. 

Certainly if your brand of humor is geared more toward fart jokes and physical comedy, this probably won't be something that will be that funny for you, however if a tight, well written script with amazing acting--especially by Sarandon here, is your cup of tea, this will definitely fit the bill.

Out of 4 Stars: 3.5                                    Rated: PG-13                                    102mins.