Susan Sarandon can make frying an egg look interesting, and she does just that during a kitchen scene in writer-director Lorene Scafaria’s The Meddler. Sarandon stars as Marnie Minervini, a neurotic New Yorker worthy of Woody Allen transposed to Allen’s least favorite city, Los Angeles. Marnie moved there after the death of her husband to be close to her daughter, Lori (Rose Byrne). Only for Lori, mom has gotten too close. After Marnie invites herself to Lori’s friend’s baby shower, an event Lori skipped, the daughter decides it’s time to set boundaries. But mom is undeterred and indefatigable in her obsession to right all wrongs, solve all problems and be there—even when unneeded or unwanted.
The Meddler is a consistently funny, even charming comedy about a mother who won’t let go. Continually playing matchmaker, even with Lori’s ex-boyfriend, Marnie strides into her daughter’s home without knocking, bearing a bag of bagels and chiding her for letting the orchids die. After watching a TV news account of a serial killer, Marnie insists that Lori call whenever she leaves home and send a text when she returns. The irony is that Lori’s friends love Marnie and value her counsel. In one case, Marnie takes charge of an entire wedding party, even purchasing the bride’s gown. Her generosity extends beyond Lori’s circle. Discovering that the helpful African American clerk at the Apple Store is taking night classes to improve his prospects, she drives him to class three nights a week.
It’s enough to send Lori to a therapist—and sure enough, Marnie starts seeing that same therapist, complaining that her daughter seems angry for no reason. Calm and dispassionate as a statue, the mental health professional offers an opinion: Is all this generosity just a way of staying in people’s lives and feeling needed? However, The Meddler’s screenplay suggests that, whatever the motivation, the results are largely positive.
Although Marnie hasn’t really gotten over her husband’s death, she attracts a couple of prospective gentleman friends. One is an affable retired cop called Zipper (the always on point J.K. Simmons) whom she encounters while stoned after swallowing a nickel bag of pot (don’t ask). The dope doesn’t cause her compulsive chattering to relent but only scrambles the output. “I would kill my daughter if she died on a motorcycle,” she tells Zipper, a Harley rider. And yet, throwing caution aside, she accepts a ride.
Sarandon plays an unforgettable character in Marnie, eclipsing all other players in a film that deals sensitively, humorously, with the emotions and frustrations of parents and their grown children.
The Meddler
Susan Sarandon
Rose Byrne
Directed by Lorene Scafaria
Rated PG-13
