Okay, the new trailer for comedy Just Getting Started is depressing to me on a few levels. First of all, it's written and directed by Ron Shelton, the guy behind some of my favorite sports movies: Bull Durham, White Men Can't Jump, Tin Cup, Play It To The Bone, and The Great White Hype. He hasn't done anything since 2003's Hollywood Homicide, though, and that was pretty terrible. Second, it looks like a film that underserves stars Morgan Freeman, Tommy Lee Jones, and Rene Russo. And third, it's the final screen performance of the late Glenne Headley, who died earlier this year.
In what looks like Grumpy Old Men in a senior citizens' home, the film pits Freeman vs. Jones as rivals in a retirement community where Russo is the prize. I feel like Freeman has settled into an unfortunate rut of playing characters whose defining trait is that they're old, and I hope this turns out to be different. Here's the synopsis:
From Ron Shelton, writer/director of Tin Cup and Bull Durham, comes the new comedy, Just Getting Started. Morgan Freeman stars as DUKE DIVER, the freewheeling manager of the luxury Palm Springs resort, the Villa Capri. DIVER may have a mysterious past, but he’s a pro at making sure that life for the high-spirited residents is one big, non-stop party. But the status quo is challenged when ex-military charmer LEO (Tommy Lee Jones) checks in, triggering a competition between Duke and Leo for the top spot of Alpha male, as well as for the affections of the newly-arrived SUZIE (Rene Russo). When Duke’s past suddenly catches up with him, the rivals put aside their differences and the two men reluctantly team up to stop whoever is trying to kill Duke, and also save the Villa Capri.
Just Getting Started opens December 8th.
