Posted: 09/12/2005

An Unfinished Life

(2005)

by Hank Yuloff

The photo still from Miramax studios shows Robert Redford, Jennifer Lopez and Morgan Freeman sitting on the porch of a ranch. Made me think Brad Pitt in Legends of the Fall, or Secondhand Lions with Michael Caine, Robert Duvall and Haley Joel Osment. The difference is that in Lions, Osment’s mom, Kyra Sedgewick drops him off with the long lost uncles and leaves. In An Unfinished Life, Lopez (Jean Gilkyson) brings her daughter Griff Gilkyson (stupid name, Griff but an amazing new actress Becca Gardner) to Ishawooa, Wyoming and stays. She is having problems with a psycho boyfriend back home and for some reason decides that father in law Einar Gilkyson (Redford) is the (temporary) answer to her life’s challenges.

Jean was married to Einar’s son, and has not been on the ranch in the 10 plus years since his death. It is a surprise to Redford that he is even a grandfather. If you watch any movies at all, you can predict that this is about the healing of relationships and the establishing of others, all of which pull at your heartstrings. Redford has grown gracefully into the roles he has taken (The Clearing, The Last Castle) rather than attempt to be something he is not (is there another Indiana Jones in the works?) and in this film, we see yet another wonderful performance.

If you saw Million Dollar Baby and the photo I described, you will probably figure out that Einer is a cranky kind of guy and Freeman is his disabled sidekick. This film was made before Baby, so Freeman might have warmed up to that film’s similar relationship, but the Clint Eastwood did a much better job of highlighting this relationship.

The other day I was flipping around the TV dial looking for something I hadn’t seen and there was Mr. 3000 (not good when a movie makes me think of lots of other movies). I had heard t was a somewhat funny and watchable movie so I thought I’d give it a shot. I bring this up because a year or so from now on a Sunday afternoon when you see An Unfinished Life pop up, you might want to invest the 1 hour 40 minutes while relaxing on the couch with a box of tissues. You’ve already paid the $40 for cable so get some use from it. An Unfinished Life is one of dozens of films released each year that are not worth the $20 (plus popcorn!) at the theater but is certainly worth postponing your weekend nap for a movie that is predictable but very worth watching.

Hank Yuloff is our senior staffer in LA and a HUGE Drew Barrymore fan. Or was that Carey?

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