Boynton Beach Club

Boynton Beach Club

Boynton Beach Club

Boynton Beach Club

I'm not sure anyone under the age of sixty will like this movie very much, but since I do not fall into that category, I really enjoyed it. The viewer is treated to some insight into the lives of active seniors living out their golden years in a fairy tale-like Florida community. Those of you who have never seen such a community in person may think that the filmmaker has pulled a Tim Burton and digitally created a Disney-like set for this film, but having lived in that area of Florida, I can assure you that there are beautiful places such as the community featured in which every color seems to be enhanced in some magical way. The movie stars a number of actors who have been in film most of their lives - some being sex symbols of the past. They show us through their considerable acting skills that they "still have it." Brenda Vaccaro plays the happy wife of a man who is killed by a careless driver at the very beginning of the film. The driver is played by Renée Taylor using her best yenta-like character - this one bronzed to extreme by the Florida sun. Taylor's character, at first, seems too comically over the top, but later in the film we get to see an example of her true acting talent. Vaccaro's character is shattered by the loss of her husband and is at loose ends because she never took part in any of the business affairs of their life. At first, I thought that this aspect was overdone because I doubted a woman of my age (sixty-one at this writing) would have been so unaware of the everyday business of a family. When I looked up Vaccaro, I found that she is actually sixty-seven - and looks damn good, I might add. Considering the society in which we grew up, those six years between us could have made for that difference in the role a wife might take in a family. Vaccaro's character is invited to join a bereavement group by a gregarious woman played by Dyan Cannon. Cannon, who just turned seventy in real life, is thin and energetic with - in my opinion - way too much face work. None-the-less, she creates a great character with a big heart. Her "take no prisoners" attitude toward life helps Vaccaro's character spring from her shell. Joseph Bologna plays the "lady killer" of the group who mentors recently widowed man thoughtfully played by Len Cariou. Cariou's character is a man who, apparently, has never cooked an egg, washed a dish, done a load of laundry. He is totally at loose ends. The art director managed to create another character for the film in Cariou's house. It is pink, pink, pink with touches of numerous other pastels. It is somewhat heartbreaking seeing this man who is definitely not a pastel sitting in this house created and run by his late wife. The picture shows us how lost and at loose ends he is. But never fear for, in the end, this is a feel-good movie, and Cariou's character is saved when the "good time girl" of the group (Sally Kellerman) takes a liking to him. Kellerman infuses her character with all the disappointment and hope possessed by a woman of her age, and is not afraid to expose her breasts to the camera, now sagging with age. One of my favorite parts in the film is when Bologna's character is telling Cariou's character about his experiences with women he has met. He says that he still thinks of himself as a young man, but eventually the reality occurs that he is an old man in bed with an old woman. He doesn't mourn this but just considers it a natural aspect of life - a life he is determined to live to its fullest until the end. I stated earlier that I consider this a feel-good movie. Some might disagree, because it concerns getting old and eventually dying, but for someone of my age, this film is a great shot of hope.

I think many of the comments about the inappropriateness of Sally Kellerman's * scene are unfair and frankly petty. Yes, she is a 70 year old woman, but ask yourself, how many women her age would agree to baring their breasts in a movie? The answer is only one who is so committed to the role that she is willing to take enormous chances, and possibly risk ridicule in the process. Her character is a wounded warrior in the relationship game and is clearly very vulnerable. And yet in spite of that, she puts that same vulnerability right out there for her new male friend to see, risking rejection in the process. Frankly, I'm happy to see an actress of integrity and commitment willing to put it all up there on the screen for those of us who enjoyed this movie. She deserves praise, not ridicule.

This movie is a love story and a comedy, but it is much, much more than that. It had a wonderful mix of personalities. It is about the reality of losing someone and coming through it a better person with a lot more of life to live. Not just for Over-60s, but it may help to be to really appreciate this film. I felt like I knew all these people...in fact, I felt like I was one of them. There was a very good write-up in AARP Magazine about the making of Boynton Beach...very interesting. Go see it...You'll laugh and cry at the same time.

I'm only 23 but I know a good deal about movies. How could someone sit down and write this screenplay? I'd be so ashamed of myself. I don't know where they found these actors either. I thought this was a parody or something when I watched it. I almost felt bad for the people who helped make this movie. I can't believe someone would put their name on the credits. And why is this rated R? I watched it on encore, I don't think they swear or anything. This is truly one of the worst movies I've ever seen. I wouldn't recommend this cheesy movie to anybody. DON"T WATCH IT! BriStanley

This film is a surprise from many points of view - the greatest is that the cast is virtually all over 65 as am I. I was appalled to see how most of them have aged. Especially Cannon who seems to be plastic surgeon-ed out of her face - but that is beside the point. They all do a good acting job and I still - the next day - feel quite a bit about the film, as you can see. It is worth the price and the story line is not bad at all but there are a few empty spots without explanation, which might have been avoided. There is a little silliness - but that's OK. Growing old, as they say, is not for sissies and this film shows how much effort goes into just keeping a simple romantic relationship aflame after a certain age. I liked the film but did not love it. I did love the age of the actors. More, please.

A very enjoyable movie, although if you live in southeast Florida, you may be able to relate to these characters better. The one thing that really got to me was that you were observing characters whose best years were behind them, which were being portrayed by actors whose best years are also behind them, and who you remember thirty years ago. When you see the character portrayed by Dyan Cannon and you remember what Dyan Cannon looked like thirty years ago, you can relate to the character's life situation with even more sympathy and compassion; it's like you really knew what this this character was like many years ago when she was hot and vital and young.

This is a movie the allows an older person to still believe there is a future. Romance can come to the over 40 set and be wonderful. Len Cariou is great and believable as is the ensemble cast. Great movie. The story is the human strain and the cast lets you into the human feeling of the senior community of Florida. However, the story is universal. I recommend this to anyone over the age that they think it's "all over" when you age. This is a forever young movie. I laughed and cried. My only regret is that it is in limited distribution. It should be shown in the large multiplexes and get a wider audience.