Thelma Review – June Squibb and Company Deliver Family Humor

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Category: Film

Published on Monday, 10 February 2025 11:25

Written by Janet Walker

Thelma, from Magnolia Pictures, brings to the screen an ode to freedom and independence, as an elderly woman is swindled by a phone scammer and decides to track down the thieves and get her money back.

The film begins with Thelma, played by June Squibb, an elderly widower, being taught by her Daniel, her grandson, played by Fred Hechinger, how to use a computer. When he is leaving, he makes her promise she will call him, if she needs to go anywhere, and to please wear the smartwatch which will notify him if anything happens.

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Not long after she receives a phone call, and the scammer, an older man, explains that her grandson, has been in an accident, hit a pregnant woman, and needs 10K to be bailed out of jail. And send cash to this address. Thelma tries to telephone her daughter Gail, played by Parker Posey, Son-in-Law Alan, played by Clark Gregg, and Daniel, no one answers their phones. So, she gathers the money from all her secret hiding places in the house and armed with the address and a determination walks to the local post office to mail the package.

Once she explains to everyone what happened they began to rethink their allowing her to live alone. And now that it is all figured out, no one was injured, and then Thelma explains she sent the money. So accompanied by her family they all go to the police and are all equally surprised by their inability to help them trace the package. And while they are sorry, there is really nothing more they can do.

After hearing there is nothing she can do; she decides there is something she can do. So, she retraces her steps and finds the address where she sent the money. She calls her grandson, who genuinely cares for her. She explains to him that she found the address and she needs a ride to visit her friend Ben, played by Richard Roundtree in his last screen role, who is living in an assisted living facility.

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Thelma explained to her grandson, not to worry, it won’t take more than 30 minutes. She finds Ben, and explains she needs to borrow his scooter. And after she attempts to steal it, he stops her and decides to go along with her.

Soon Thelma and Ben are driving the two-seater scooter through the streets of Los Angeles, armed with an address, and a determination to get her money back. This leads the film into Act 2.

For anyone who has had an elderly parent, Thelma is spot on. The hell be damned independence, and determination to recapture the freedom that both the ravages of age and the modernization of society have taken from them. Thelma features many older actors, and they each capture the nuances and, in some cases, the sadness as age deteriorates differently.

The film balances the laugh-out-loud moments with the challenges confronted by the elderly and the seriousness of the pitfalls, obstacles, and scammers that prey on society.

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The ensemble of players, including Squibb, Roundtree, Bunny Levine, along with Malcom McDowell, Fred Hechinger, Parker Posey, and Clark Gregg each deliver genuine and authentic performances. We see the daughter becoming the parent, attempting to explain to her mother what is best for her, to protect her. The onset of early-stage dementia, and the importance of friends.

Thelma offers a reflection of the circle of life and is a film to be enjoyed with family. June Squibb is nominated for a Best Actor Independent Spirit Award for her performance.  See it.

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Country: U.S.

Language: English.

Runtime: 98 minutes.

Director: Josh Margolin.

Producer: Chris Kayne, Benjamin Simpson, Karl Spoerri, Viviana Vezzani, Nicholas Weinstock, Zoe Worth.

Executive Producer: June Squibb, Tobias Gutzwiller, Fred Hechinger.

Writer: Josh Margolin.

Cast: June Squibb, Fred Hechinger, Parker Posey, Clark Gregg, Richard Rountree, Malcom McDowell, Aidan Fiske, Hilda Boulware, Chase Kin, Carol Cetrone, Sheila Korsi, Annie O’Donnell, Zoe Worth, David Giuliani, Annie Korzen, Bunny Levine, Nicole Byer.

Janet Walker is the publisher, founder, and sole owner of Haute-Lifestyle.com. A graduate of New York University, she has been covering international news through the Beltway Insider, a weekly review of the nation's top stories, for more than a decade.  A general beat writer/reporter and entertainment/film critic, she is also an accomplished news/investigative news/crime reporter and submitted for Pulitzer Prize consideration "Cops Conspire to Deep Six Sex Assaults" in the Breaking News Category and was persuaded to withdraw the submission. Ms. Walker has completed five screenplays, "The Six Sides of Truth," "The Assassins of Fifth Avenue," "The Wednesday Killer," "The Manhattan Project," and the sci-fi thriller "Project 13: The Last Day." She is completing the non-fiction narrative, "Unholy Alliances: A True Crime Story," which is expected to be released in early 2025. She is a member of the Los Angeles Press Club, the National Writers Union, and a former member of the International Federation of Journalists.