Grandma

Grandma is a movie which proves you don't need massive run-times to make a point. It's only 78 minutes and it doesn't waste a minute.

Elle Reid (Lily Tomlin) is an acclaimed poet with less-acclaimed personal skills. She's estranged from her daughter, Judy (Marcia Gay Harden), while Violet, her long time life partner, has recently passed on. The film opens with her and her current girlfriend, Olivia (Judy Greer), bitterly breaking up. And then her granddaughter, Sage (Julia Garner), shows up at her front door. Sage is pregnant and due for an abortion in eight hours. Sage is broke and needs money for the procedure. Elle is broke and needs money so Sage can have money for the procedure. And thus begins the most awkward drive around Los Angeles of their lives.

Writer/Director Paul Weitz divides the plot into six chapters. Each chapter has Elle and Sage go to one stop, do their thing, and move on. These chapters allow stars such as John Cho, Laverne Cox, Sam Elliott, and Elizabeth Pena to appear in memorable cameo roles. They make the most in the short screen time they have.

Tomlin makes the most of her screen time. Elle's bluntness makes her more popular with the audience than with her acquaintances. Her losing her temper can become black comedy gold in the right circumstances. Elliott's scene, though, is where we start to see her at her most dramatic. That's when we start to sympathize with the acid tongued misanthrope.

Grandma is a bittersweet movie. But the ending leaves the movie on a more hopeful note. It's a movie about coming to terms with the past and embracing the future. It makes that point quickly and the results are unforgettable.