Movie · 1990 · Comedy, Drama · 1h 41m · R · English
Curator score: 5.6/10 (48.2K ratings)
Having a wonderful time, wish I were here.
Overview
A substance-addicted actress tries to look on the bright side even as she's forced to move back in with her mother to avoid unemployment.
Ratings
Curator score: 5.6/10
IMDb: 6.7/10
Letterboxd: 3.58/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 83%
Metacritic: 71
TMDB: 6.6/10
Director
Mike Nichols
Production
Columbia Pictures
Cast
Meryl Streep, Shirley MacLaine, Dennis Quaid, Gene Hackman, Richard Dreyfuss, Rob Reiner, Mary Wickes, Conrad Bain, Annette Bening, Simon Callow, Gary Morton, CCH Pounder, Sidney Armus, Robin Bartlett, Barbara Garrick, Anthony Heald, Dana Ivey, Oliver Platt, Michael Ontkean, Pepe Serna
Where to watch
Hulu
Curator Review
Verdict
A sharp, funny, and surprisingly tender showbiz dramedy that uses addiction, mother-daughter conflict, and Hollywood vanity to land real emotional punches. Meryl Streep and Shirley MacLaine are the engine, and the film’s wit keeps the pain from curdling into melodrama.
Best for
viewers who like acerbic character-driven dramas
fans of mother-daughter stories with bite
people interested in Hollywood satire and backstage life
audiences who appreciate strong lead performances
viewers open to comedy mixed with recovery and family conflict
Skip if
you want a purely uplifting addiction story
you prefer plot-heavy films over performance pieces
you dislike prickly family dynamics
you want a modern, polished depiction of recovery
Overview
Postcards from the Edge is one of those movies that feels breezy until you realize how much it has quietly taken on. On the surface it’s a Hollywood comedy about an actress trying to stay employed and stay sober; underneath, it’s a brutally specific mother-daughter story about love expressed as control, criticism, and survival.
Worth noting
Meryl Streep plays the chaos with precision, but Shirley MacLaine is the film’s secret weapon, turning every scene into a negotiation between vanity and vulnerability. Mike Nichols keeps the tone nimble, letting the jokes land without sanding off the sadness. The result is a film that feels lived-in, messy, and emotionally exact.
Bottom line
What lingers most is how honest it is about self-destruction without romanticizing it. The movie understands that recovery, family, and work can all be humiliating at once, and it finds humor in that humiliation without mocking the people inside it. It’s a smart, adult, very rewatchable film with real sting.
Top Letterboxd reviews
Audrey (5★) · 978 likes
if I can face my life with half the honesty and humor as Carrie Fisher did, I think I'll be okay.
mia lee vicino (4★) · 905 likes
coincidence that they cast dennis quaid aka harrison ford Lite™ as carrie fisher’s love interest?? i think not!!!! 👀
mia lee vicino (4★) · 715 likes
this movie is what the inside of my brain looks like when i am having a bad time!!! and even occasionally when i am having a good time.
there is this beautiful quote from Carrie Fisher’s source novel that i wish had made it in here somewhere: “She wanted to be tranquil, to be someone who took walks in the late-afternoon sun, listening to the birds and crickets and feeling the whole world breathe. Instead, she lived in her head… more
Laura Parker-Saladino (3.5★) · 527 likes
"Ever since you were a little girl, I had this feeling....I don't know, that'd I'd lose you, that you'd be taken from me early."
Holy shit, this line is haunting.
Karsten (3.5★) · 475 likes
A film of great performances, many of which only get 1 or 2 scenes. Reiner, Dreyfuss, Bening. But Gene Hackman specifically…damn. My 2nd Sheriff Harry S. Truman jumpscare of the week