Book Club, released on May 18, 2018, is an American romantic comedy directed by Erin Simms and Bill Holderman. Book Club was Bill Holderman’s first movie as a director. Paramount Pictures produced and distributed the movie.
The movie was released as Home Media on DVD, Digital HD, and Blu-ray in 2018. The movie, after its release, received a mixed response from the audience. However, the box office collection of this movie grossed over $104 million while the budget was only $14 million.
The movie starts with how they organize a book club every weekend and read books together. And continuing to the story on one such fine weekend, they all decide to read Fifty Shades of Grey, an erotic book. As they continue to read, they get turned on because of the book and start fantasizing about sexual life and how they missed out on things in their life and want to complete their bucket list. And this begins with the movie.
Exploration of the complicated feelings of death and the time that comes in life is one of the film’s strengths. The film delves into the complex emotions that arise when facing mortality and aging. The journeys of all four characters with getting married for life, finding love once more, reconnecting with an old love, or creating a liberated lifestyle with fun and sex offers a provoking perspective on living life to the fullest.
Cast details:
The main character of Diane, played by Diane Keaton, and her three friends are Vivian, played by Jane Fonda; Candice Bergen, played the character of Sharon; character Carol played by Mary Steenburgen. This is the movie’s main cast, and depending on these characters, the movie is set.
The rest of the cast is as character Bruce played by Craig T. Nelson, another character Mitchell, played by Andy Garcia; Don Johnson playing the character of Arthur, character George, played by Richard Dreyfuss, a friend of George, Tom, played by Ed Begley Jr., character Jill and Adrianne played by Alicia Silverstone and Katie Aselton respectively. Other characters who act as side roles are Derek, Chirs, Irene, and Cheryl, played by Wallace Shawn, Tommy Dewey, Lili Bordán, and Mircea Monroe, respectively.
Book Club: The Next Chapter:
Book Club: The next chapter follows this group of four best friends, Diane, Vivian, Sharon, and Carol, as they decide to go to their bucket list place, Italy, for Vivian’s bachelorette party. During the pandemic, they continued reading through Zoom, and with Vivian’s surprising choice to marry Arthur, they plan on visiting Italy. While the first movie revolves around the four reading Fifty Shades of Grey books, the new sequel replaced it with Italy as the central theme. It serves as the backdrop for all the comedy, sexual remarks, and philosophical take on relationships.
The movie is set to be released on May 12 in the United States and the UK on May 11 in Australia. The movie has many moments filled with genuine emotion and charm. The friendship and chemistry between the four best friends are joyous to watch.
Their strong bond with each other as they support their friends through difficult times and uplift one another to instill the courage to savor life is very endearing to watch. However, these moments are very few and in between tired sexual jokes and cringe humor.
The film’s humor falls short of expectations. The attempts at comedy based on Italian stereotypes and sexually suggestive remarks missed the mark. The tone of the movie’s story seems uncertain whether they want the characters and their lives to be taken seriously or use them to rattle off cringy humor and sexual comments every two minutes.
They portrayed the characters as silly seniors getting into hopeless situations and having to be rescued by attractive older men (Giancarlo Gianni, Vincent Riotta, and Hugh Quarshire), which depicts patronizing condescension. Overall, Book Club: The Next Chapter is a feel-good comedy film. The performance of the cast of the movie is praiseworthy. However, the weak screenplay and tasteless humor greatly disappoint the film.
Also Read: Jane Fonda Before & After The Veteran Actress’s Transformation Over The Years
