Furlough

A young, struggling part-time correctional officer gets the chance to become full-time by escorting a prisoner to her mother's deathbed. She is obviously supposed to learn something from the experience of trying to chaperone an unruly but older prisoner. Instead of a script that might let them learn or bond, instead it's a series of scenes with them simply sitting together as they travel.

Unfortunately, it feels as if the plot gets elements added to it to make it difficult. Most of what occurs in the trip seems to happen for no good reason, except to create situations where the inmate can escape, at least temporarily? Why, for example, would they be forced to take a bus and then a train to the mother (but then quickly return via rental car)? Why does the phone of the officer constantly ring or receive texts? Why do romantic interests appear and disappear as if put on the screen like chess pieces?

In short, I wanted to like this movie but it seems a mess, and I kept wondering how much Whoopie Goldberg and Anna Paquin were paid for what must have been 2 days of shooting each (if that). The humour really doesn't work - painfully so. The script is dull at best, and the tone is sometimes too mournful for it's own good. If you are a fan of Orange is the New Black, any episode you've seen is better than this.

This film tells the story of a correctional officer who escorts a prisoner for 36 hours for a death bed visit.

The plot sounds like a heavy drama, but actually it is a light hearted comedy. The plot is funny, even thought there are no specific scenes that make me laugh out loud, it still cheers me up. I think both Melissa Leo and Tessa Thompson are great in the film. I enjoyed this unexpectedly sweet comedy.

The movie is enjoyable to a certain level ,, but i kinda expected a comedy movie to be actually funny ,, i mean it was okay ,, heartwarming for some scenes but not funny ,,, i don't know ,, i think there was that one scene with the taser and that was it .

The idea and the plot are original and had some potentials but the screenplay was so dull and not interactive.. I liked that intense Tessa Thompson character but still didn't rise to the occasion, same goes for Melissa Leo.

I think i'm being a bit generous giving the movie a 4 stars review ,, just for the idea itself.

Greetings fellow screen peepers! Oscar winner Melissa Leo's film resume is loaded with dramatic roles, but in Furlough we get to see a lighter side of her. In Furlough, she plays Joan Anderson, a prison inmate serving her sentence when she is granted a weekend furlough in order to visit her dying mother. A rookie correction officer played by Tessa Thompson (Annihilation, Creed & Thor: Ragnarok) is assigned to chaperone her but she also has some baggage of her own in the form of a needy mother played by Whoopie Goldberg. The tone of the film is kept light during the first half of the film, but the film takes a more dramatic turn once Leo meets her mother. Leo is more than capable of the tone shift and she shines. Anna Paquin has a solid supporting role towards the end of the film that rounds out the cast. This is a nice feelgood road trip style film

Definitely not great but not the worst. Either way it's watchable despite its cringey moments where the prisoner gets cuffs off and even free from the C.O. for a portion of time, which was ridiculous on many levels. Melissa Leo was pretty decent and so was the young Tessa Thompson; mediocre for what it is.