Movie · 2007 · Drama, Comedy · 1h 54m · R · English
Curator score: 7.1/10 (60.8K ratings)
There's a moment in everyone's life when childhood ends and adulthood begins. For Jon and Wendy Savage, that moment is now.
Overview
A sister and brother face the realities of familial responsibility as they begin to care for their ailing father.
Ratings
Curator score: 7.1/10
IMDb: 7.1/10
Letterboxd: 3.68/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 89%
Metacritic: 85
TMDB: 6.9/10
Director
Tamara Jenkins
Production
Fox Searchlight Pictures, Ad Hominem Enterprises, Lone Star Film Group, This is that, Savage Productions
Cast
Laura Linney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Philip Bosco, Peter Friedman, David Zayas, Gbenga Akinnagbe, Cara Seymour, Tonye Patano, Guy Boyd, Debra Monk, Rosemary Murphy, Hal Blankenship, Joan Jaffe, Salem Ludwig, Peter Frechette, Maddie Corman, Margo Martindale, Michael Blackson, Sidné Anderson, Sandra Daley
Curator Review
Verdict
A sharp, humane dramedy about adult siblings forced into caregiving, balancing deadpan humor with real grief, guilt, and emotional avoidance. It’s especially rewarding for viewers who like character-driven family stories that feel painfully specific rather than neatly resolved.
Best for
fans of bittersweet family dramas
viewers who like dark humor grounded in realism
people interested in caregiving, aging, and sibling dynamics
admirers of understated, actor-driven performances
Skip if
you want a plot-heavy movie with clear catharsis
you dislike cringe-adjacent family conflict
you prefer broad comedy or sentimental tearjerkers
you’re not in the mood for illness, decline, and emotional mess
Overview
The Savages is one of those quietly devastating films that sneaks up on you. Tamara Jenkins finds comedy in the humiliations of adult responsibility without ever turning the characters into punchlines, and the result feels observant, humane, and deeply lived-in.
Worth noting
Laura Linney and Philip Seymour Hoffman make the sibling relationship feel specific in every glance and argument: affectionate, resentful, exhausted, and trapped by the same family history. The film is at its best when it lets small details carry the emotional weight, from awkward logistics to the strange rituals of caring for a parent who can no longer care for himself.
Bottom line
What lingers is the balance. It’s funny without being cute, sad without being manipulative, and honest about how caregiving can expose old wounds instead of healing them. If you like intimate American dramas with a dry edge, this is a standout.
Top Letterboxd reviews
cinéfila... 🕯️ (4★) · 442 likes
*blows a kiss to the sky for philip seymour hoffman*
Eli Hayes (4★) · 250 likes
(I think I owe this review to twelve words, and twelve words only:)
Rest in peace, Philip Seymour Hoffman. You were a brilliant, brilliant man.
Muriel · 239 likes
tamara jenkins' writing... the tenderness of philip seymour hoffman's acting... his extremely blonde eyebrows... laura linney and her cat... i will be crying until tomorrow
Laura (3.5★) · 164 likes
i really respect tamara jenkins’ dedication to writing jokes about sam shepard plays in her films, but what is even more admirable is how she made me cry while watching philip seymour hoffman cry bc his girlfriend made him eggs.
shookone (4★) · 144 likes
very smart and truthful new sincerity cinema about shattered family values, unavoidable mid life crises, neuroticismo americana and non-surpressable guild feelings. quietly and unsuspected details emerge, and it feels like you get to know the characters day by day, en passant. while immersing in this comfy world, the movie manages the ride on the razors edge of comedy and drama in the most balanced way. a small, snugly and homely gem.