It’s hard to imagine anyone falling in love with this movie, but it’s hard to imagine anyone outright hating it either. It’s really a big shoulder-shrug, the type of “take-it-or-leave-it” entertainment that few people will run out to see, but it’s a pleasant enough time around the holidays, and a pretty good movie for sons to take their mothers to.
What Works: It’s clear that Barbara Streisand (who’s been in semi-retirement for a while) is having a great time, and hasn’t lost a step as an overbearing-yet-loving Jewish mother. This could have been a stereotype, but she injects her interactions with Seth Rogen (as her schlubby, not-so-charming son) with so much warmth and affection, she practically creates a three dimension character with her facial expressions alone. I’ll be honest and say I saw more than a little bit of my own interactions with my mom in their relationship, and maybe this movie was a little funnier and more touching to me than it might be for you. Plus, I’m a sucker for road trip movies.
What Doesn’t Work: Ehhh…could you live without seeing this movie? Sure, but it’s one of those low-key, minor success movies that will really work on you if you’re in the right mood.
What I Would Have Done Differently: Who knows…you either go for the execution/premise or you don’t, and there’s really no way to make it better, but a lot of ways to make it worse.