Movie · 2002 · Drama, Comedy · 2h 5m · R · English
Curator score: 6.6/10 (192.3K ratings)
Schmidt Happens.
Overview
A recently retired man embarks on a journey to his estranged daughter's wedding, only to discover more about himself and life than he ever expected.
Ratings
Curator score: 6.6/10
IMDb: 7.2/10
Letterboxd: 3.62/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 86%
Metacritic: 85
TMDB: 6.9/10
Director
Alexander Payne
Production
Avery Pix, New Line Cinema
Cast
Jack Nicholson, Kathy Bates, Hope Davis, Dermot Mulroney, June Squibb, Howard Hesseman, Harry Groener, Connie Ray, Len Cariou, Mark Venhuizen, Cheryl Hamada, Phil Reeves, Matt Winston, James M. Connor, Jill Anderson, Vaughan Wenzel, Judith Kathryn Hart, Robert Kem, Melissa Hanna, Tung Ha
Curator Review
Verdict
A sharp, rueful midlife road movie that blends dry comedy with genuine melancholy. It’s especially rewarding if you like character studies that build to an emotionally devastating, quietly uplifting finish.
Best for
fans of existential dramedies
viewers who like road movies with emotional payoff
people drawn to late-career performances
audiences who appreciate dry, observational humor
fans of Midwest-set character studies
Skip if
you want a fast-moving plot
you dislike bleak or awkward comedy
you prefer broadly likable protagonists
you want sentiment without irony
Overview
About Schmidt is one of Alexander Payne’s most incisive films, turning retirement, loneliness, and family estrangement into something both painfully funny and deeply humane. It observes its protagonist with a mix of satire and compassion, letting small humiliations and quiet disappointments accumulate into a larger portrait of a life that feels suddenly unfinished.
Worth noting
Jack Nicholson gives a wonderfully controlled performance, all irritation, vanity, and buried grief, and the film knows exactly how much to reveal at a time. The humor can be blunt or uncomfortable, but that’s part of the point: the movie is interested in the gap between the life a person imagines and the one they actually lived.
Bottom line
What lingers most is the ending, which lands with unusual grace. It doesn’t erase the sadness that came before it, but it reframes it, giving the film a tenderness that feels earned rather than imposed. For viewers who like their comedies to leave a bruise, this is an easy recommendation.
Top Letterboxd reviews
Rick Burin (4.5★) · 448 likes
*A FEW SPOILERS*
Dear Ndugu,
How are you? I'm fine. Today I watched the film About Schmidt. I enjoyed it. At times I feared it was just a less inspired take on The Straight Story, with a score that went too jaunty too often, and a tendency to undercut its many truthful moments with smug comedy. But then the ending came along, one of the greatest endings I've ever seen, a heartbreaking voiceover followed by a heart-mending pay-off, and I… more
Terence Ang 洪偉凱 (3★) · 344 likes
dear boomer,
i ain't reading all that i'm happy for u tho or sorry that happened
yours very truly, ndugu
David Sims (4★) · 322 likes
the end gets me every time! Jack magic!!
theo (3.5★) · 203 likes
but what kind of difference have i made? what in the world is better because of me?
ndugu’s painting had me tearing up
2013 · Drama, Adventure · 1h 55m · R · Curator 8.5/10 (234.6K ratings) · Where to watch: fuboTV, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, MGM Plus
A natural companion piece: another wry Midwest character study about aging, disappointment, and family dynamics, with Payne’s same blend of deadpan humor and empathy.