4/5
Review by John P. Harvey.
Thelma Post (June Squibb), a 93-year-old widow, continues to live in her own home and maintains a close connection with her daughter, Gail (Parker Posey), and son-in-law, Alan (Clark Gregg), and especially with their son, Daniel (Fred Hechinger). Daniel does all he can to keep Thelma company and help her with computer and mobile technology.
When Thelma receives a desperate call from Daniel begging her to bail him out after causing an injury while driving under the influence, she knows she must do all she can to help, and mails the required ten thousand dollars in cash before realising that she has been had.
The mild unbelievability of the success of the ruse in fooling not only Daniel’s grandmother but both of his parents, we can forgive as Thelma’s personality takes centre stage. The local police force, in the person of Detective Morgan (Chase Kim), being of no real help, Thelma makes up for her moment of foolish naïvety with a practised wisdom and resoluteness reflecting an inviolable sense of fair play and so readies herself to find those responsible and bring them to account, embroiling her old friend, Ben (the late Richard Roundtree, of Shaft fame), in her scheme.
This of course is not a plot for us to take all that seriously; it’s pure comedy. Much of the fun lies in Thelma’s surprising resourcefulness. And that resourcefulness highlights the strength and character of individuals too easily dismissed as irrelevant merely on the basis of how long they’ve been on the planet.
Thelma’s daughter and son-in-law are likeable enough, and Daniel’s harmless ineptitudes combine with his good heart to make him an appealing character, if a little lost, but Thelma and Ben are characters whom both young and old with any wit will appreciate and enjoy for the good use they make of their minds, their bodies, and modern technology.
Subverting stereotypes of the ineffectualness of the aged, Thelma’s dogged determination to maintain control over her own life gives the tale its backbone. With a light touch, the film shows us that we are never just our age.