Eleanor Morgenstein is bold, outspoken, loving, loyal, infuriating, and has a fluid relationship with the truth. She is the central character in Eleanor the Great, directed by Scarlett Johansson from a screenplay by Tory Kamen, and June Squibb brings her to vivid life in a brilliant and captivating performance. Eleanor’s more abrasive qualities and her ease with lying might put one off, yet Squibb also reveals Eleanor’s vulnerability with a moving poignancy, inviting one’s empathy. The film focuses on themes of friendship, grief, and the possibility of forgiveness.
At age 94, Eleanor has been living in Florida for over a decade with her best friend Bessie (Rita Zohar), a Holocaust survivor. Both widows lead a contented life, Bessie’s quieter demeanor making room for Eleanor’s larger than life extroversion. She may be impulsive and have no filters between thought and speech, telling Bessie in the morning “you look tired” to which the latter wryly replies “thank you” – but her devotion to Bessie is undeniable, as is made evident when Eleanor verbally eviscerates a teenage worker at the supermarket for being too diffident to go to the storeroom to look for Bessie’s favorite brand of pickles. Bessie’s sudden demise leaves Eleanor at a loss, her life in Florida revolved around Bessie, they were inseparable. As Robert Frost wrote: “Home is the place where, when you have to go there, they have to take you in” – Eleanor decides to move back to New York, to live in Manhattan with her recently divorced daughter Lisa (Jessica Hecht) and teenage grandson Max (Will Price).
Lisa is apprehensive about the arrangement, and it’s clear to see why. Eleanor is amusing and even endearing when she mischievously spins a tale for a nosy neighbor in Florida, less so when she criticizes Lisa’s new haircut. Aside from the sense that mother and daughter have never been close, the apartment is small and both Lisa and Max lead busy lives. As Eleanor says, “What am I going to do all day?”
Lisa, who is also researching retirement homes in the area, has thought of that, and signed Eleanor up for a singing event at the Jewish Community Center. But somehow Eleanor finds herself sitting in a Holocaust Survivors support group, and that is where the plot thickens.
There she meets Nina (Erin Kellyman), a college student writing a feature on Holocaust Survivors for a journalism class. An intergenerational friendship grows between the two, as they develop a vibrant camaraderie – one of the many pleasurable aspects of the film. Her meetings with Nina help Eleanor fill the void left by Bessie, and she, in turn, provides Nina with the listening heart that encourages the young woman to talk about her own grief. Kellyman imbues Nina with warmth and sincerity that contributes a sense of authenticity to the unusual relationship. Yet it all began with a lie, and at some point, it unravels.
Some parts of the narrative come together a bit too neatly, too obviously in service to the film’s themes. Other potentially difficult issues are glossed over in order to reach that satisfying conclusion. But I felt that the strong characters and their individual trajectories compensated for that neatness, creating a moving emotional experience. That is true for the supporting characters as well – Lisa and Max who suddenly have Eleanor back in their lives, and Nina’s father (Chiwetel Ejiofor) who is contending with his own issues. I also appreciated the portrayal of Jewish life in the film, and the way it commented on the changing role of women in Judaism in a small moment that resonated strongly: a young girl reading from the Torah on her Bat Mitzvah, then beaming radiantly. June Squibb is magnificent; I could watch her forever. There is a moment when she is in the midst of the great lie, when Eleanor says something true, and Squibb makes you feel it.
Eleanor the Great
Director: Scarlett Johansson; Screenplay: Tory Kamen; Cinematography: Hélène Louvart; Editor: Harry Jierjian; Music: Dustin O’Halloran; Cast: June Squibb, Erin Kellyman, Jessica Hecht, Rita Zohar, Chiwetel Ejiofor.
