It’s common, even in the early days of summer, to fall victim to what I like to call “big boom fatigue.” After watching face-melting fireworks displays like Avengers: Age of Ultron, Furious 7 and Mad Max: Fury Road, you’re liable to feel a little exhausted from all the excitement. Sometimes you need a little respite from all the CGI carnage and falling debris, a mild-mannered, quiet movie to act as a sort of counter-balance to all the big-budget noise. For this, you’d be hard-pressed to do better than I’ll See You In My Dreams, a moving, silky-smooth character portrait about an older woman’s private lament of a world passing her by and the beauty of life in twilight. It’s your one-way ticket to summertime serenity.

The film’s keystone is Blythe Danner, whose soft, sophisticated performance will occupy your thoughts for a good long while. She plays Carol, a long-widowed, peacefully retired woman who spends her days drifting around her comfy house and lazing about with Hazel, her ailing dog. When she’s forced to put her canine companion down, her lazing turns lonesome (this happens very early in the movie, but by this point Danner’s already won us over, a testament to her talent). The grief over Hazel’s passing strikes Carol like blunt force trauma, scrambling whatever semblance of stability she had.

Thankfully, Carol’s got human friends, too; three of them, in fact (they’re played by June Squibb, Rhea Perlman and Mary Kay Place). It’s straight-up Golden Girls status, and it’s awesome. The girlfriends all live in the same retirement community and get together regularly to play bridge and clink glasses of chardonnay. The three supporting characters are just defined enough to build a fun group dynamic, and the actors are courteous to Danner, being mindful about letting their leader lead.

In a funny scene later in the movie, the girls get high on medicinal weed and trek to the grocery store to quell the subsequent case of munchies that grips them. They’re a wild bunch: they get stopped by a police officer a third their age for pushing home a shopping cart full of snacks on the side of the road. They laugh in his face, because they’re badasses. (Yeah…it was the weed at work, too. But still: GRANNIES RULE!)

After some playful coaxing, the girls convince Carol to revisit her romantic pursuits after a years-long dry spell. She’s persuaded to try speed dating, which doesn’t exactly pan out the way she’d have liked. One particularly horny gentlemen (oaf) comes on to her by proudly proclaiming he “doesn’t mind” if she has herpes. Charming! In any case, Carol finds more desirable opportunities for romance out in the real world, away from the procession of gray-haired creepers.

She’s courted by a leather-skinned widower named Bill (Sam Elliott, whose immaculately groomed, snowy broom-stache is all kinds of epic), a heavy-steppin’ cowboy type whose gravelly voice and bracingly direct advances make Carol quiver like an autumn leaf. He’s all but got her heart in his hands, but there’s another guy. A pool guy, to be exact. Lloyd (Martin Starr), a new, younger male presence in Carol’s life, strikes up an unusual relationship with her. One night they go out for some drinks and karaoke, and Carol tears down the house with a ravishing rendition of “Cry Me a River”. The look plastered on Lloyd’s face as she sings is unmistakably one of desire. There’s some kind of spark between them, but writer-director Brett Haley and co-writer Marc Basch don’t ever bring these blurred lines into focus. It’s a smart choice that gives the movie some depth and color. A little goes a long way.

Speaking of Mr. Haley, he’s in his twenties and wrote a movie about an elderly woman’s acquiescence with mortality. Kudos, kudos, kudos (I’m nearly 30 and can’t figure out women my age). He shows good taste, opting for sly, sardonic humor over broad-comedy pandering. The movie never begs you to laugh, or cry, or do anything. It moves us at its own pace, and though some moments feel like cold spots (some of the “Neo-Golden Girls” banter feels protracted and dips into cliché), the story on the whole is gloriously unhurried.

Utmost respect goes to Danner, whose gift is invaluable. She’s got the gentlest touch. Instead of having a rough-and-tumble grappling match with death himself, she leans in and puts her head on his chest. They engage in a sort of slow dance, swaying tearfully to a dirge from the great beyond. Then, she sticks her tongue out as if to say, “Why so serious?” What a treasure. Respect to Haley as well, who with I’ll See You In My Dreams has declared himself a young filmmaker whose vision is anything but ordinary.

It appears as if the Best Supporting Actress race will be between Jennifer Lawrence and Lupita Nyong’o, and with the latter recently winning at the Screen Actor Guild, we have her slightly nudging out J-Law for the win. But it is still a close race. Everyone seems to be hopping on board the Lawrence train with her recent success and her down to earth personality, so do not rule her out completely. In a slightly less competitive year, Julia Roberts performance in August: Osage County would have earned her more attention, but instead finds herself in a distance third. Both Sally Hawkins and June Squibb received their first Oscar nominations this year, but have a much greater chance of getting recognized at the Independent Spirit Awards than here. Although she never appears on screen, Scarlett Johansson’s (Her) voice alone makes us care about an Operating System like we never have before. Johansson’s lack of a nomination for her role is not all that surprising as there has never been a nomination for a voice performance–a shame because this would have been a perfect time to start.

Category Predictions

Best Supporting Actress Nominees

Sally Hawkins – Blue Jasmine (review)

Jennifer Lawrence – American Hustle (review)

Lupita Nyong’o – 12 Years a Slave (review)

Julia Roberts – August: Osage County (review)

June Squibb – Nebraska (review)

Alexander Payne’s Nebraska is a light and warmhearted film about a son who wants to bond with his father, no matter how obtuse his thoughts are or off-putting his attitude is. Being both determined and naive is a dangerous combination, but that perfectly describes David’s (Will Forte) father Woody (Bruce Dern) in a nutshell. One of Woody’s biggest faults was that he has always believed what people have told him. So when Woody receives a sweepstakes certificate in the mail saying that he has won a million dollars he actually believes it, despite everyone around him telling him it is a scam.

Woody is determined to leave his home town of Billings, Montana and beeline it to Lincoln, Nebraska to claim his winnings. Even if that means walking the 750 miles to get there. David has recently split with his girlfriend of two years and is looking for an excuse to get out of town for a few days. He knows that his father is delusional about the money, but he agrees to drive his father to Lincoln anyways. At least he knows his father will be safe in his hands.

On their way to Lincoln, they stop to visit the a small hometown of Hawthorne, Nebraska where his father grew up. This is where the film really flourishes. Because I am familiar with the locations of where the film takes place, I can assure that much of what is depicted is genuine, only adding just a touch of exaggeration to keep things interesting. Many of the residences of this small Midwest town have few words to say about themselves and are generally more interested at what is on the television than talking. Word tends to spread quickly in small towns, so it is not long before the entire town knows about the windfall Woody is supposedly going to receive. Of course, the news also attracts the attention of decade-old “friends” who are for money they claim he owes them.

What makes the film such a delight to watch are the individuality of its characters. Each one is fun to watch in their own right; the father’s relentless determination, the mother’s hilarious outbursts, and the son’s sympathy and desire to bond with his father. On this journey he finds out a lot about his father. By the end it is revealed why he is so strong-minded to get the money. Prepare for the “awwws”.

Will Forte is typically known for his comedic roles (Saturday Night Live) but goes a different direction here with a much more reserved role. Bruce Dern’s performance stands out the most, making a boozed and beat up pessimistic father somehow sympathetic. Bob Odenkirk (of Breaking Bad) is also good here though he has much more of a supporting role, which is good because he dominates the scenes with his energy.

In order for Payne to receive funding from the studio to make a black and white film, he had to settle for a smaller budget. Payne is a Nebraska native who felt strongly that the film needed to be colorless to capture the mood of the old American heartland. Personally, I think it was a wise decision as it enhances the portrait of its characters and locations. Perhaps he should always consider making smaller budget films.

There is not a whole lot that goes on in Nebraska, similar to the small towns that are featured in it, but this is a road trip/family bonding film that is extremely entertaining. Nebraska is not perfect, but it may just end up being the year’s best road trip film. Payne keeps the camera rolling a bit too long in the final scenes, resulting in an ending that should have been shortened by about five minutes or so. Nonetheless, Nebraska is finally a Payne film that I can confidently stand behind.