Breaking a bone is usually an experience reserved for individuals who lived during the 1970’s and onwards. Of course, this assertion may be a little debatable to young people who have experienced such a fracture. It happened to the screenwriter of Late Bloomers, now in theaters, and Guardians of the Galaxy star Karen Gillan is playing it out onscreen. Gillan last starred in Sleeping Dogs, and her bumbling Brooklynite persona Louise in Late Bloomers bears no resemblance to her Jumanji role or Guardians, amongst others. However, she is not any less watchable if not more so than ever before in her new indie comedy-drama.
Louise is completely bed-ridden with an agonizing injury and next to an old Polish lady (the perfectly cast Malgorzata Zajaczkowska) who is frankly and completely ill-tempered most of the time throughout the movie. Late Bloomers will make you laugh, cry, and cringe like nothing else even though in some form we have seen it all before.
What can be done to win your ex back? Get drunk almost senseless and try getting through their window? Not good at all. But there is an old saying that says “no pain no gain.” Louise represents one such kind of hard drinking woman typically found around places like Brooklyn. Her catalytic great fall –literally- comes when she drinks too much then tries to claw her former lover’s window; initiating several levels of self-reclamation (emotional-spiritual-physical).
However first off it puts her into what might pass for a hospital room meant primarily middle-aged and older people such as Antonina (Zajaczkowska’s Americanized stage name Margaret Sophie Stein). That woman shares her room with Louise; instead of speaking English at all times she sends cold death stares at them. By the way they are hilarious together with Stein thus contributing to the reasons why one should keep watching this small indie movie.
Michelle Twarowska (Fatal Attraction, The Gray Man) is another standout as Antonina’s grown-up granddaughter Sylvia. Even though she speaks English as her second language here in the U.S., Sylvia has a good understanding of social cues and can tell that her obstinate grandmother might like Louise even after they spend some days together in the hospital. Meanwhile, be on the lookout for Louise’s melodramatic exchange with the doctor claiming that her hip surgery will be an unprecedented procedure among people of her age, just ripe at 28. After their simultaneous recovery from injuries, however reluctantly, Louise accepts Sylvia’s job offer to take care of Antonina when she is not able to look after herself anymore.
And some other familiar faces such as Ricky Stanicky standout Jermaine Fowler are along for the ride playing Brick; an indolent roommate who despite relying on his dad’s cushy finances. There are also moments where Louise and Brick have quite funny but sexless interactions between them but which get extremely funny when her lame hip gets involved in the whole erotic stuff. Further, Lori Tan Chinn portrays Inez one of the women recovering alongside Louise and Antonina in hospital rehab center a real treat for Orange Is The New Black aficionados. Also Gillan and Stein have several slapstick moments at home following their discharge from hospital including one scene involving adult diapers which you should pay attention to its extremeness.
Louise’s father Al (“Happy Gilmore”) played by Kevin Nealon is part of this supporting cast, although he does something more serious this time around so get ready for it! And it turned out brilliantly; actually quite profound and touching performance given what we usually see him doing on screen. Some tender moments occur between Nealon and Gillan who discuss Dorothy (Talia Balsam) mother who is suffering terribly from dementia. At such times you will reach out for tissues because Gillan learns how important family is in the midst of taking care of Antonina. Never forget your roots, goes the saying; hence, it could be always that one can fall in love again irrespective of age or disease. Late Bloomers from Vertical is currently playing at theaters.
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