Movie Review: ?The Guilt Trip? ? Guilty With an Explanation | njtoday ...

2 & ? popcorns

By?Michael?S.?Goldberger,?film?critic

?Don?t?get?me?wrong.?This?goodhearted?farce?starring?Barbra?Streisand?and?Seth?Rogen?as?a?mom?and?son?who?traverse?America?in?a?comically?epiphanic?journey?will?doubtfully?be?analyzed?in?those?haughty?French?cinema?magazines,?even?when?they?simply?can?t?find?enough?stuff?about?Jerry?Lewis?to?fill?their?pages.?All?the?same,?I?laughed,?guiltily?at?first.

?Joined?by?other?audience?members,?we?tittered,?commiserated,?formed?just?a?slight?tear?here and?there,?and?for?ninety-five?minutes?suspended?our?disbelief?in?the?name?of?simple, uncomplicated?enjoyment.?Which?probably?explains?much?of?the?film?s?charm.?Wafted?along?in sugar?coated?truths?and?cynicisms,?you?fantasize?about?parent-child?resolution.

?Fact?is,?any?human?relationship?worth?having?is?complicated?and?beyond?explanation.?And?that goes?double?if?it?s?between?parent?and?offspring.?However,?that?bit?of?social?psychology acknowledged,?Ms.?Streisand?and?Mr.?Rogen?nonetheless?manage?to?push?enough?of?the

buttons?and?strike?enough?of?the?requisite?nerves?to?pull?off?the?gambit.

?The?famous?diva?portrays?Montclair,?N.J.?s?Joyce?Brewster,?a?member?of?that?society?of widows?who?ve?shunned?another?go?at?marital?bliss?in?order?to?dote?over?their?resultantly overprotected?child.?Mr.?Rogen?s?Andrew,?who?has?resided?on?the?sunny?Left?Coast?since

earning?his?degree?in?organic?chemistry?at?U.C.L.A.,?is?the?beneficiary?of?that?devotion.

?The?opening?scene,?which?depicts?Andrew?s?semi-amused?forbearance?as?he?listens?to?a?series of?Mom?s?messages?discussing?everything?from?the?potential?purchase?of?boxer?shorts?to?where she?will?park?at?Newark?Airport,?speaks?volumes?about?said?upbringing.?On?and?on?it?goes,?until you?hear?yourself?mouthing?the?mercy-seeking,??OK,?Ma,?OK!?

?But?don?t?you?dare?ratchet-up?that?plea?to,??OK,?OK,?Ma,?leave?me?alone?already,??which might?very?well?bring?that?plaintive,?indefensible?assault?that?goes,??So?this?is?how?I?m?repaid?for spending?the?whole?100?Years?War?in?labor,?and?then?giving?up?my?own?happiness?for?you.?

Stepping?back?emotionally,?from?a?safe?distance?it?s?pretty?funny.

?Because,?whether?misguided,?disillusioned,?or?innocently?selfish,?it?s?essentially?about?love.?And?thus,?it?is?in?this?realm?of?human?cataclysm?and?wonder?that??The?Guilt?Trip??delves,?its?successes?due?more?to?subject?matter?than?execution.?The?premise?a?cross?country?jaunt shared?by?Mom?and?sonny?boy?is?hardly?credible.?And?yet,?it?works.

?Given?that?we?forgive?this?flick?its?flaws?in?order?to?enjoy?its?loose-leafed?pontifications?and honey-dipped?sappiness,?only?the?slimmest?of?reasons?is?necessary?to?prompt?the?title expedition.?We?learn?Andy?is?an?expert?in?his?field?who,?after?a?three-year?stint?with?the?EPA,

has?invented?a?miraculous,?environmentally?friendly?cleaner.?Now?he?has?to?sell?it.

?But?never?mind?how?he?has?secured?a?product?demonstration/interview?with?every?top?retailer across?the?U.S.?If?we?ve?accepted?everything?else,?why?not?this?star-spangled?fantasy?about American?business?opportunity??So?it?s?K-Mart?in?this?city,?Costco?in?that,?and?so?on,?until practically?every?Fortune?500?retailer?has?witnessed?Andy?s?presentation.

?Alas,?without?giving?too?much?away,?Rogen?s?chemist?is?hardly?as?good?a?businessman?as?he?is an?inventor.?Although?Scieoclean,?his?oft?mispronounced,?misunderstood?organic?cleaner?is?a marvel,?Andy?s?egg?headed?presentation?is?a?stultifying?bore.?Of?course?Mommy,?a?shopping maven?personified,?has?a?suggestion?or?two.?You?take?it?from?there.

?Naturally,?the?intrepid?duo?meets?a?few?characters?along?their?route,?often?the?result?of?segues written?in?to?fatten?the?script.?Shades?of?Forrest?Tucker?s?oil?millionaire?in??Auntie?Mame? (1958),?Brett?Cullen?is?a?pleasant?fantasy?as?the?gentleman?cowboy?enamored?of?Joyce?when she?accepts?a?Texas?restaurant?s?four?and?a?half?pound?steak?eating?challenge.

?This?is?all?convivially?portrayed?without?us?thinking?for?a?second?that?Streisand?is?anyone?but Streisand.?The?same?goes?for?Mr.?Rogen.?It?may?be?a?stroke?of?dumb?luck.?But?while?both players?are?capable?enough?actors,?by?not?venturing?beyond?caricature?they?keep?it?unassuming, ostensibly?affirming?that?the?humorous?voyage?should?be?graded?on?a?curve.

?Hence,?I?am?placed?in?the?position?of?apologist,?hesitant?to?sign?my?name?to?this?cinema prescription?for?fear?I?will?be?found?out?a?rank?sentimentalist.?In?defense,?as?witnessed?any given?night?on?Turner?Classic?Movies,?there?is?a?place?for?the?B?movie.?Seen?in?that?light,?my

innocent?hope?is?that?I?ll?be?vindicated?by?viewers?who?enjoy??The?Guilt?Trip.?

??The?Guilt?Trip,??rated?PG-13,?is?a?Paramount?Pictures?release?directed?by?Anne?Fletcher?and stars?Barbra?Streisand,?Seth?Rogen?and?Brett?Cullen.?Running?time:?95?minutes

Source: http://njtoday.net/2012/12/24/movie-review-the-guilt-trip-guilty-with-an-explanation/

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