Too many awkward moments in ‘Hope Springs’

Judging by the trailer for Hope Springs, the Tommy Lee Jones and Meryl Streep flick about a middle-aged couple that wants to put a spark back in their marriage, you’d think this is the kind of movie you’d go to with your parents.

Think again.

While the film features two veteran acts at their best, it has so many awkward moments, it’s hard to imagine anyone – no matter the age – wouldn’t be at least a little uncomfortable with some of the scenes. The premise is this: Arnold (Jones) and Kay (Streep) have been married for 31 years. But their marriage doesn’t have much going for it. Kay cooks Arnold the same breakfast every morning before he heads off to his job and she goes off to hers. The two sleep in different rooms and don’t really talk much, so she signs up for a week-long therapy session with Dr. Bernie Fed (Steve Carell).

A stereotypically grumpy old man, Arnold doesn’t like the notion of going to therapy, and the initial sessions don’t go so well. One day, Arnold storms out of the room. The next, Kay leaves the therapist’s office crying. Through it all, Bernie continues to ask probing questions and encourages the couple to slowly become intimate again. After the couple discusses their unwillingness to fantasize about sexual encounters they’ve never had, Bernie encourages them to some exercises which result in the couple engaging in some heavy petting.

Admittedly, Streep and Jones are both terrific in their respective roles. Carell reigns it in nicely as the understated therapist, too. And clearly the movie addresses intimacy issues some long-married couples face. It’s definitely a more realistic depiction of mature romance than lots of films out there. But the week of intensive therapy is very drawn out, some of the “action” is repetitive (Streep runs away crying, tries to deliver oral sex and lies restlessly in her bed several times)  and a few of the scenes induce an uneasiness on par with being forced to watch your parents getting it on.  In the end, director David Frankel (The Devil Wears Prada, Marley & Me) needed a better script to really make this movie work.