Every year,  I always find one or two movies that are filled with more heart than any Oscar winner you’ll ever watch. And so far this year I found it in The Leisure Seeker. It’s a movie starring Donald Sutherland and Helen Mirren about an elderly couple who take one last road trip. One of them has dementia and the other is dying of cancer so you can definitely say time is of the essence. I will admit that I went into this movie now. Thinking much of it. Of course, when you have Donald Sutherland and Helen Mirren, you know that it’s going to be at least entertaining. How could it not be when you have two great actors! But I was pleasantly surprised about how much I laughed and found a personal connection to this movie. So much so that I actually recommended it to my mother and the rest of my family. The last time I did that I was working in a video store and rented Grumpy Old Men for my grandfather who proceeded to watch it twice in a row because he laughed so hard.

There’s nothing particularly original about a person coming to the end of their life and wanting one last hurrah. Even one of my novels is about that particular subject. But what makes each of these stories unique is a personal Journey that these characters take because they are unique only to those characters and we as an audience either identify with it or not. For this story, it’s basically about a southern woman who was married to English in her from Massachusetts and decided to get in their old Winnebago and take one last road trip and of course that’s where the adventure ensues. We all know that a journey like that is about personal reflection and in many ways setting things right before they die. But what made The Leisure Seeker so fantastic is the humor. Now you might be wondering is it okay to laugh about dementia. Maybe not, but I feel like this movie to where you can’t help but laugh even when these characters struggles come forth. Grumpy Old Men which is in my mind the classic did that especially with two comedic genius is like Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon. I feel like the back and forth with Donald Sutherland and Helen bearings characters are on par with that.

This movie is not without its flaws. There are certainly pacing issues and at moments where it drags,  but I feel like these are just minor issues compared to the heart of this story. It’s never easy seeing your parents or even grandparents come to the end of their lives. Of course it’s going to be sad, but if you can find humor from a story like this then it truly is a great story. One of the brilliant aspects of this film is not only do you see the perspective of the two main characters as they come to the end of their lives but how their children deal with it. We have a connection to both sets of characters because we will end up being one and the other in the end. It’s a shared experience. I think the conversations with the children are just as important as the conversations between the main couple because you are getting both of those perspectives and scene, everybody for who they are and how they face The end which said something about our character.

Now some might think this is just some bad Lifetime movie that’s predictable, there are certainly some aspects of it that are predictable, but I don’t think that matters  with realy the heart of the story,  which is how we deal but the finality of our Lives I’m trying to set things right. I won’t spoil this film and it’s a little twist at the end, but I will say that it’s an emotional film filled with humor, Grace,  and reflection. You will laugh and you will probably cry, but the performances by Donald Sutherland and Helen Mirren truly drive this film as if they are our parents facing their end. I truly loved this film in a lot of ways and even though there are some sad moments that made me remember loved ones who are gone, this film is great because of its humor that we can all be hilarious when facing the end or taking care of those that are coming to the end of their lives. You can’t help but laugh at some of these situations because it’s always better than sitting around and moaning about death . Also, because there’s humor in everyday life and I think this film reminds us of that.

The film may not be original and that’s okay…certainly not a reason to trash this movie like some critics will.  After all,  we don’t want to be reminded of loved ones who are gone dealing with parents that are coming to the end of their lives. But I definitely think it’s a film that adult children and parents should see. There’s a lot of heart in this story which makes it worth seeing. But this film is made great by the performances of Donald Sutherland and Helen Mirren and I hope they at least get nominated for a major award, it would be a disservice if they didn’t. Even though the idea may not be very original, often we need to have that Nostalgia on our lives by remembering the good times as a family. That’s what I think the Leisure Seeker does and that’s the heart of the story. That’s what makes it great and worth seeing