After the untimely passing of Carrie Fisher and her mom Debbie Reynolds over the holidays, we wanted to go back and visit the terrific 1990 Comedy/Drama POSTCARDS FROM THE EDGE.
Adapted by Carrie from her own book, its a funny, sad and smart, clearly autobiographic tale of Suzanne Vail (Meryl Streep). Addicted to drugs and booze that threatens to derail her acting career, Suzanne finds herself figuratively tied to her overbearing Mother when a studio refuses to produce her next picture without Mom keeping an eye on her behavior.
Luckily for us, Mom Doris is played by Shirley MacLaine in a bold, hilarious and vanity-free performance.
Mom's the film legend with a million stories from another time and daughter is struggling to succeed while medicating herself into oblivion to deaden her emotions around their relationship.
Its clearly the story of Carrie and Debbie, with many anecdotes that have become famous about their lives duplicated on film.
Streep is excellent, as are Gene Hackman as a film director who's run out of patience with Suzanne, Dennis Quaid as a young lothario in Suzanne's bed and Mary Wickes as her bad-ass Grandma. Richard Dreyfuss is great in a small role as the doctor who often pumps Suzanne's stomach after an overdose, but still finds himself drawn to her.
Mike Nichols (The Graduate, The Birdcage) brings his usual classy sure hand to the director's chair.
Both Streep and MacLaine have the chance for one big musical number in the film, which they both nail. It's telling that during these numbers, the other one looks on with unspoken pride and respect that they cant seem to communicate in their many, unending verbal assaults on each other.
It's especially interesting to watch this film alongside the 2017 HBO documentary about Carrie and Debbie called "Bright Lights". There are so many real events and choices from their lives depicted, you realize POSTCARDS is really more truth than fiction.
These two witty, powerful and talented women (Carrie and Debbie or Meryl and Shirley) are a pleasure to watch. Get ready to laugh and wince in equal measure.
Postcards gets a B.
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