Hello, My Name Is Doris

Hello, My Name is Doris (2015)

*** (out of 4)

Sally Field shines playing Doris, a 60-something woman who hears a motivational speaker and soon builds up the courage to go after her much younger co-worker (Max Greenfield).

HELLO, MY NAME IS DORIS isn't a masterpiece but it was obviously intended to be a showcase for Field. Lets face it, the sad reality is that most great actresses can't get great roles after they reach a certain age, which is a real shame because film buffs are always robbed of seeing great performances. Field proves why she's an Oscar-winning actress with a wonderful performance in a film she pretty much carries on her own.

The film's comedy lies with Field having to act hip to things like Facebook and different sorts of music. There are some very funny moments throughout the picture but there's no question that the main draw is watching Field perform her magic. She really brings this character to life and there's no question that it's not just a one note job. She has to play different layers with this character including a couple dramatic moments that come out of no where yet the actress nails it.

Greenfield is also extremely good in his part and really brings a warmth to his character that perfectly blends with Field. The two share a terrific chemistry and certainly carry the film. HELLO, MY NAME IS DORIS isn't ground-breaking in any way, shape or form but it's an entertaining little gem that shows Field hasn't lost a beat.

Need a feel good movie? This little sentimental but funny and ultimately emotionally satisfying film is the work of Laura Terruso (form her previous short film 'Doris & The Intern') and Michael Showalter who also directs. The story at times becomes exasperating because of the failure of the main character to step out of her old backward ways in dress and behavior and join the contemporary times, but it also s a reminder of how aging people define their world and their entrapment in it.

Doris (Sally Field) is a 60-something woman who passed up an engagement early in life to remain with her mother on Staten Island. At the opening of the film we witness the funeral of the deceased mother with the emotionally impaired Doris struggling with her brother (Stephen Root) and sister in law (Wendy McLendon-Covey) over who should get the full of junk and memories house in which Doris lives and commutes by Ferry to Manhattan every day where she works in a small tacky cubicle. Doris meets John (Max Greenfield) on the elevator and immediately feels electricity despite the fact that the very young John is not in her range of relationships. Through a series of discussions with Doris' best friend Roz (Tyne Daly) and daughter Vivian (Isabella Acres) as well as a meeting with a self-help guru (Peter Gallagher) Doris attempts to court John, even to the extent of attending a punk rock party and other failed attempts and finally has to face the fact that john is only a friend (despite many hilarious fantasies of possible love affairs).

Sally Fields is consistently terrific though her grossly absurd costumes grow tiresome and make us realize how futile is her true attempt to woo John. The film does focus on aging people and their problems assimilating with the young millennials and in the midst of this is a solid core of respect for the need of the lonely partnerless person. It just goes on a bit long. Grady Harp, June 16

Doris Miller (Sally Field) has cared for her mother until her recent death. Her brother Todd (Stephen Root) and his wife Cynthia (Wendi McLendon-Covey) want her to clean out and sell her Staten Island house. Dr. Edwards (Elizabeth Reaser) is treating her hording. She falls for the much younger new co-worker John Fremont (Max Greenfield). Her best friend Roz (Tyne Daly) takes care of granddaughter Vivian (Isabella Acres) who helps Doris set up a fake Facebook profile to friend John. This leads Doris to John's favorite band as they get close. Then she discovers he has girlfriend Brooklyn Henderson (Beth Behrs).

This is a quirky indie with an unusual point of view. The light fun tone is odd at first with the premise. I kept thinking of an odd geezer hound dogging a young girl. It wouldn't work as a light comedy. However, Sally Field makes this infinitely better. She oozes charm and is full of fun. It takes a powerful sadder side trip with her hording. There are quirky turns that don't completely work for me but Sally Field is undeniable here. She is the shining star that energizes this movie.

So you think Sally Field doesn't look hot, or does look hot, or the male lead (name escapes me) is hot, isn't hot, or what is a 60something year old doing, fantasizing and pursuing a 30something year old. These actors are people, and their fictional characters are people within the confines of the story. They weren't made for you. There are billions of people in the world - each with his/her own story, also not made for you. You have your own story, and have done things in your life that someone else might wag their finger at and declare, "inappropriate!" (and if not you've had an incredibly boring life and it's time to get out there and get one)

Go ahead and make these judgments if you must. You're not the ultimate judge of what's hot and what's not, what's appropriate and what's cringe-worthy. Part of the "lesson" of the movie turned out to be that such prejudices can interfere with living a full life and prevent you from exploring all the avenues that may present themselves to you.

Wife and I enjoyed the movie very much.

Doris reminded me of my own mom, who was "hot" and effervescent, and who was named, Doris. I went to see it for that very reason, and I was rewarded by a beautiful and interesting movie, with many other aspects beyond whether the characters were hot and whether their behavior was age-appropriate.

Norma Rae, Edna Spalding, Mrs. Gump, Mary Todd Lincoln, and Doris Miller. Sally Field's most recent role, Doris Miller, is a worthy addition to her amazing gallery of film performances, given since she emerged as Gidget a half century ago. An eccentric, lonely woman of advancing years, Doris has sacrificed her life to care for her now-deceased mother. Mother and daughter have evidently been hoarders, and Doris's brother and sister-in-law eagerly want her to clean up and clear out, because they want to sell the Staten Island house. Meanwhile, Doris fixates on John Fremont, a much younger man, who is the new art director in her Manhattan office, and, inspired by a motivational speaker named Willy Williams and by countless bodice-busting romance novels, she decides to pursue romantic involvement with the good looking young guy. While "Hello, My Name is Doris" plays out somewhat predictably, the film provides a showcase for Sally Field in yet another Oscar-worthy performance.

In the hands of a less gifted actress, Doris could have been little more than a caricature; a bespectacled woman who wears wigs, has a large bow in her hair, decorates her cubicle with cat calendars, and lives alone in a cluttered house with a cat. However, Fields brings restraint and depth to the character, and she convincingly conveys the shy woman's re-emergence from a decades-long cocoon. Although her pursuit of the young man borders at times on cringe worthy, Fields manages to retain her dignity and audience sympathy. Fremont, played by Max Greenfield, who is about three decades younger than Fields, kindly returns Fields's overtures of friendship, but fails to grasp that she wants more than he is prepared to offer. Doris's "Walter Mitty" like day dreams about Fremont are often amusing, but her foray into Facebook stalking takes a dark, unsavory turn.

The supporting cast is good, although none overshadow Field's star turn. Greenfield is fine as Doris's fantasy-love interest, and Tyne Daly is her usual tough-shell warm-inside self as Doris's best friend and confidante. Peter Gallagher nails the Willy Williams part and actually imparts some helpful, if clichéd advice to Doris. Directed and co-written by Michael Showalter, "Hello, My Name is Doris" may have been intended as a fantasy- exploitation film for older women, who seem to dominate the movie's audiences. Generally, May-December romances involve older men with younger women, and Field herself starred in one such film, "Murphy's Romance" with James Garner, although the age difference in that film disappeared through the stars' chemistry. However, the chemistry fails to develop herein, and Doris and John reverse the gender/age roles, which places them close to Harold and Maude, a possible turn off for some viewers. Nevertheless, the exceptional performance by Sally Field is well worth seeing and the proceedings are often amusing, even if a few scenes between her and Greenfield may make some uncomfortable.