Is Anybody There?

04/27/2009

One thing that’s abundantly clear in the modern studio system is that Hollywood really just can’t get a handle on age. While commanding, intelligent roles for old women are tantamount to rocking horse shit, the issue of aging men is typified in one of three main varieties; the cantankerous coot (Secondhand Lions), the stoically masculine (Gran Torino), or the sprightly sage (the likes of Alan Arkin in Little Miss Sunshine).