The Savages

Philip Seymour Hoffman and Laura Linney star as a brother and sister dealing with an ailing father (Philip Bosco) and their attempts to place him in a proper home. Their last name, Savage, is appropriate, as writer-director Tamara Jenkins has concocted a rather noxious but funny family drama that pulls no punches and refuses all forms of hokey sentimentality. It’s not necessarily a good time at the movies, but it’s not supposed to be. This is a sad story about family struggles laced with bitter humor, something Hoffman and Linney do extremely well. Both deserve Oscar nominations. Bosco provides a stingingly sad portrait of a man who is losing his facilities and perhaps didn’t plan well for the end times. I’m thinking this movie will cause some of us to invest our money better and perhaps go back to school for that Masters degree.