The Cemetery Club

Three lady-friends, Jewish widows in their 60s, grieve together, laugh together, attend weddings and funerals together--but when one of the gals thinks she's found a decent man, the other two interfere out of jealousy or fear (or maybe a bit of both). Screenwriter Ivan Menchell, adapting his play, delivers a collection of lightly dramatic and comedic episodes which result in a half-hearted sitcom--a Jewish "Golden Girls"--and nobody involved with the picture looks as though they had great hopes for it. Possibly hoping to target the "Moonstruck" crowd, director Bill Duke plays on our nostalgic feelings for a cast of familiar faces, warmly sentimental music on the soundtrack, and antiquated comic shtick which may strike some TV viewers as funny (it's The Rerun Club). For a few brief moments, Ellen Burstyn and Danny Aiello create a nice romantic rapport, but her introduction to him (fighting with a groundskeeper and being bitten in the leg!) is a gag that even Mel Brooks might have passed on. Menchell is awfully fond of meet-cutes and warmly bitchy put-downs, and Burstyn has to struggle to carve out an interesting character (it doesn't help that she's weighed down with wigs and scarves and jackets). With its teary-eyed laughter and fake Jewish come-on, the movie appears to be a total fraud; however, there was the germ of a good idea here, particularly with Aiello's cab-driver (he's actually more interesting than the women). Diane Ladd and Olympia Dukakis are certainly capable, but Duke's inconsistent rhythm and indecisive narrative puts a wall around these people--we don't even know for sure if these are likable people, so generic is the writing and handling. ** from ****

Breezy look at a group of elderly widowed friends in Pittsburgh, and whether or not their friendship will survive once one of them hooks up with a guy. "The Cemetery Club" is nothing special. Lighthearted without being mushy, the movie is the type that you'll probably only be interested in seeing once; while enjoyable, it's not enough to merit a second watch. Plenty of good performances, though; have Ellen Burstyn, Diane Ladd, Olympia Dukakis and Danny Aiello not turned in great performances?

Watch for a young Christina Ricci as the granddaughter.

After 39 years of marriage, still-attractive music store owner Ellen Burstyn (as Esther Moskowitz) loses her husband to a heart attack. While paying her respects, Ms. Burstyn meets cop-turned-cab-driver Danny Aiello (as Benjamin "Ben" Katz ) in the Pittsburgh cemetery where their loved ones rest in peace. Burstyn and her friends have formed "The Cemetery Club" to mourn their dead husbands; the more traditionally inclined Olympia Dukakis (as Doris Silverman) masters the widow role, but Diane Ladd (as Lucille Rubin) seeks greener pastures. Inactive club member Lainie Kazan (as Selma) is most eager to dig up an new husband. Tired of her cemetery visits, Ms. Ladd shouts, "I refuse to be in a club where half the members are dead!" One of the film's consistently least affected performers, Burstyn wavers along the spectrum.

****** The Cemetery Club (2/3/93) Bill Duke ~ Ellen Burstyn, Danny Aiello, Olympia Dukakis, Diane Ladd

One would think that if you're going to make a movie about 3 widowed friends, you'd either want to make it serious and somber or hysterically funny. Unfortunately, The Cemetery Club is neither and it exists in some weird in between place where you keep waiting to move or laugh.

Obviously inspired by female centered tear jerkers like Terms of Endearment or Steel Magnolias, The Cemetery Club never quite achieves take off and is never funny or moving enough to be memorable like those other films.

You can't say the cast isn't great though. With Ellen Burstyn, Diane Ladd, and Olympia Dukakis, The Cemetery Club should be a lot better than it is and it lets down these fine women at every turn. Burstyn probably fares the best as she's given the most to do and it least gets one good scene where she talks about her dead husband on a date with a potential suitor (Danny Aiello).

By grown ups, I don't mean that it's rude. More mature. I had heard that this was a good film, and I had been searching for it for some time, so was delighted to fall over it in a bargain bin locally, and bought it when I probably shouldn't have. However, it did while away a surprisingly long couple of hours, and was a pleasant bit of fluff.

I have a lot of time for Olympia Dukakis and Ellen Burnstein, so I was a bit disappointed that the one was so miserable and the other was a bit dim - OK so she's been married for ever, but she surely didn't live under a stone with her husband? I would have thought that the way she was smuggled into the hotel room made her look more like a prostitute than anything, and I felt sorry for her having to make her way out alone in the morning. Having said that, I was delighted that she reconciled with her new man before the end.

One absolute joy was Selma (Zelma?) who was the perpetual bride, tacky and brash as all get out, but completely lovable.

A nice movie.