It’s probably inevitable that with an ageing population enjoying greater longevity, there exists a market and culture specific to them.
Content creators are answering this need with movies and T.V. series that revolve around characters in their golden years. Recent examples include HBO’s “Shrinking,” a dark comedy in which 70-something Harrison Ford’s character is battling M.S., the “Matlock” reboot in which grandma, Maddie Matlock (Kathy Bates) reenters the workforce, “Grace and Frankie,” starring 4 favorite septuagenarian actors embarking on new lives, Tyler Perry’s “Assisted Living” and Netflix’s “The Inside Man”(Ted Danson), both of which deal with senior living facilities.
Sunday’s Jewish Film Festival offering, “Love in Suspenders,” takes the upbeat romantic comedy genre into the world of Baby Boomers with a lovely Israeli comedy that touches every romcom trope, from the “meet cute,” initial tension and mutual dislike of the romantic pair, and all the obstacles that may interfere with their relationship, and brings it to a satisfying conclusion—which is what we expect from a romantic comedy.
Tami (Nitsa Shaul, “Shtisel”), a 60-something famous singer widowed from her duet partner, runs her car into Beno (Yehuda Barkan), injuring him. Tami’s lawyer son insists that she do anything possible to prevent Beno from suing because scatterbrain Tami has had so many accidents that her license will be taken away and who knows how much she will have to pay Beno. So, Tami winds up taking Beno home with her, since he says he cannot take care of himself.
Actually, Beno, somewhere in his 70’s, could take care of himself, but he’s flat broke and his apartment is uninhabitable because of some serious electrical problems. He’s living hand to mouth as a charity worker and is fighting eviction from his landlord for non-payment of rent. So, for him, Tami’s swanky apartment in an upscale assisted living high rise is luxurious and fortuitous.
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