planktonrules

"Thelma" is the sort of film I like when I'm in the mood for some light and entertaining movie without all the big-time actors, mega-budgets, and explosions. It's a gentle tale...one told sweetly and with deft direction.

The story is about an old lady in her 90s, Thelma (June Squibb), and her bid to stay active and alive in her dotage. When someone scams her out of $10,000, instead of sitting back and crying, she's determined to track down the thieves and get her money back. Unfortunately, her family is hysterical when she and a friend (Richard Roundtree) disappear.

If you are looking for a laugh-filled comedy, this isn't it. Instead, its humor is realistic and is not at the expense of the characters...and it's easy to believe this outlandish tale because of this. Very enjoyable and worth your time.

In the 1980s, Robert Mitchum's film career was still going. I can't say 'going strong' because too many of these films were simply dreadful...especially his made for TV movies. Of course, there were a few exceptions, such as "A Killer in the Family"...but most were pretty bad. One other thing many of these films have in common was that they were a nepotistic group of films...with Mitchum's brother, sons and even grandson in the films. In the case of "Jake Spanner", you once again have a bad movie along with the usual family connections. In this case, it's based on a novel, "The Old Dick".

The film begins with an aging old gangster (Ernest Borgnine) approaching the aging detective Jake (Mitchum) about a case. It seems that the gangster has had a family member kidnapped and he wants Jake on the case. The story that follows is really strange...especially when Jake learns that this gangster is supposed to be dead! It also includes dealing with one of the silliest lady villains in screen history.

This movie, apart from Mitchum's usual nice acting, is terrible. Sure, you get to see a lot of old time movie and TV stars, which is nice...but the rest of the movie stinks...especially every second the villainess (Laurie Lathem) appears. She makes a Matt Helm villain seem subdued and subtle by comparison. Overall, a nice job by Mitchum but pretty much awful otherwise.

"Promises to Keep" is notable as a made for TV film which stars three generations of Mitchums...Robert, his son Christopher and Christoper's son, Bentley...sporting a VERY 80s doo.

Jack (Robert) is a terrible father and husband. He's been away for 30 years and now late in life he's returning to his family. Not surprisingly, the son isn't thrilled and wants him to get lost. The rest...well, they kinda want him to stay...maybe.

The problem with this film for me is that although once again Robert Mitchum makes everything seem so good and natural, this isn't exactly what I'd say about the rest of the actors. Uneven or even bad...the acting just isn't great. Overall, an okay film notable only for the three generations of Mitchums.