December Movie Roundup Part 2: The Prom & Let Them All Talk

Today's post is for anyone who needs more Meryl Streep in their lives, i.e. everyone. So settle in for two very different but equally compelling movies that should brighten up your weekend.

The Prom: Directed by Ryan Murphy and based on the Broadway play by Chad Beguelin, Bob Martin, and Matthew Sklar, this movie tells the story of Emma, a teenage girl in Indiana who wants to take her girlfriend to her high school prom, but is banned from doing so. When a group of washed-up Broadway stars hear about this, they decide to swoop in and save the day, hoping for some good PR that will boost their own careers. What follows is a sweet and heartwarming story that reaffirms the importance of love and inclusivity and tolerance. With some extremely catchy songs accompanied by wonderful choreography and costumes.

The washed-up Broadway stars are played by Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman, James Corden, and Andrew Rannells. Yeah, the casting director for this movie was NOT messing around. If that weren't enough, you also have Kerry Washington as the intolerant head of the high school PTA, and Keegan-Michael Key as the admirable high school principal who wants to fight for Emma and ensure she can have her prom. Jo Ellen Pellman, who plays Emma, is an instant star, while Ariana DeBose, who plays her still-closeted girlfriend, Alyssa, will break your heart as she sings about why she can't come out and all her fears about what her mother will say. 

This is a compelling and beautiful story that takes a really ugly scenario and turns it into something life-affirming. And while it was a particularly emotional watch for my queer friends, for me, it served as an emotional reminder of how much I miss Broadway. The songs are quintessential Broadway magic, incredibly funny and sassy, and managing to capture a world of emotion in a few pithy sentences. I burst out laughing when Andrew Rannells delivered a song picking apart the Bible and all its inconsistencies, and when Keegan-Michael Key sang about how Broadway is not a distraction but an escape, I wanted to cheer. Also, I loved the romance that Meryl Streep's character embarks upon in this film, proving that May-December romances work just as well (if not better) when you've got an older lady and a younger man. This is a glorious musical that will keep you entertained from start to finish. And while we can't all go to Broadway right now, at least we can experience a little bit of it in our homes. 

Let Them All Talk: Directed by Steven Soderbergh, and starring Meryl Streep, Candice Bergen, and Dianne Wiest, this movie is a bit like watching a fictionalized American version of Tea With the Dames. Streep play Alice, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author who is now struggling to write her next masterpiece. When her agent (played by the lovely Gemma Chan) persuades her to go to the UK for a prize ceremony, Alice agrees with a few conditions: she won't fly, but will make the journey aboard the Queen Mary 2 instead. And she wants to be accompanied by her nephew (the equally lovely Lucas Hodges) and old college friends Roberta (Bergen) and Susan (Wiest). She has lost touch with these friends over the years, but for some reason now wants to bring them all together. 

What follows is a wildly fun mystery as you try to piece together what Alice's motives are, what happened to drive these friends apart, and enjoy the intergenerational conflict amongst all the characters and their bizarre lives. These days, it is hard to watch any movie that was filmed pre-pandemic where people are hugging and standing too close together, but it's especially unnerving to see strangers crammed together on a ship crossing the Atlantic Ocean. But putting all that aside, this is a freewheeling, deligthful, incredibly naturalistic movie about some very sassy women and all their personal drama. Deborah Eisenberg wrote the story outline, but the cast mostly improvised their dialogue, and it's apparent when you watch this movie that these ladies were having a ton of fun. Reportedly Streep was only paid 25 cents for the film, and frankly, I'd probably be OK with that too for a job where I got to spend a few weeks on a ship with these talented actors. 

Much is bemoaned about the lack of meaty roles for women over a certain age in Hollywood, but Let Them All Talk offers a delicious insight into what we could get if we gathered those actors up and let them loose. It is such a gratifying and fun experience, and a very cozy weekend watch for the holidays.