Cast: Ellen Burstyn, Danny Aiello, Olympia Dukakis, Diane Ladd
Director: Bill Duke
Producers: David Brown, Bonnie Palef, and Sophie Hurst
Screenplay: Ivan Menchell
Cinematography: Steven Poster
Music Direction: Elmer Bernstein
U.S. Distributor: Touchstone Pictures
Esther Moskowitz (Ellen Burstyn), Doris Silverman (Olympia Dukakis), and Lucille Rubin (Diane Ladd) are three aging, Jewish best friends. When we meet them in a short prologue, they are all married. Four years later, they're widows. Most recently bereaved, and taking her husband's death the hardest, is Esther. Then, one day at the cemetery, she meets Ben Katz (Danny Aiello) by the grave of his late wife. Together, after an uncertain period of getting to know one another, they begin exploring what love can be like the second time around.
Like Used People, The Cemetery Club attempts to present a romantic comedy with characters who are over fifty. The results are not wholly satisfying. In fact, both movies suffer from similar problems: relying too much formulas and following a meandering script.
The recipe-style storytelling of The Cemetery Club identifies it as a product of one of the Disney subsidiaries (Touchstone), companies that survive by churning out marginally-watchable films founded upon recycled premises. In this case, the only new wrinkle is that the characters aren't icons of youth and physical perfection. Everything else has been overdone before. One small saving grace is the humor, some of which is surprisingly effective.
Certain manipulative moments of The Cemetery Club are designed for poignancy. One, where Esther talks about coming home after her husband's death to find his toothbrush still damp, works. That's an exception, however, since most of these incidents are marginally successful at best. And trying too hard to bleed tears from the audience isn't the movie's only flaw. The Cemetery Club runs out of energy about a half-hour before the final credits roll. When a film should be building towards something, The Cemetery Club loses momentum.
Don't blame the actors for the movie's shortcomings. Ellen Burstyn, taking her first major screen role in a while, does an excellent job fleshing out Esther, and almost manages to singlehandedly pull the movie through its murkiest moments. Diane Ladd and Olympia Dukakis, in what amount to supporting roles, have a good sense of their characters -- better, I think, than the audience is given an opportunity to see. Danny Aiello does what he can with a banal, stereotyped persona.
The Cemetery Club should have been better. The romance between Esther and Ben doesn't have to follow typical Hollywood form, but instead of crafting something special, the film makers opted for the easy way out. Even more disappointing is the bland and inconsistent nature of the three womens' relationships. Movies like Enchanted April illustrate the kind of interpersonal dynamics that could have elevated The Cemetery Club above its level of mediocrity. With so many lost opportunities, this picture deserves to be buried.
© 1993, 1996 James Berardinelli