Faced with the decision of a lifetime, Arvilla Holden (Jessica Lange) hijacks her two best friends (Kathy Bates, Joan Allen) and sets off in a vintage '66 Bonneville convertible across the great American West to deliver her husband’s ashes to her step-daughter. What begins as a simple trip, will end up becoming a chance to rediscover themselves, their friendship, the importance of promises - and of living life to the fullest.
Sentimental, but not too sugary, Bonneville proves there's a road movie for every taste and demographic. While the testosterone-fueled Easy Rider took aim at the young and the disaffected, this female-centric offering targets a more mature, less cynical audience. After her husband, Joe, passes away, Arvilla (two-time Oscar winner Jessica Lange) faces the prospect of homelessness as he neglected to update his will. Her single-minded stepdaughter, Francine (Christine Baranski), now in possession of the property, intends to sell their Pocatello home if she doesn't hand over her father's ashes, so Arvilla and Mormon best friends Margene (Kathy Bates) and Carol (Joan Allen) pile into Joe's refurbished 1966 Bonneville Pontiac convertible with the urn and head to Santa Barbara. On their trip through Bryce Canyon, Lake Powell, the Vegas Strip, and other Western wonders, they meet helpful skateboarder Bo (Victor Rasuk, Raising Victor Vargas) and chivalrous trucker Emmett (Tom Skerritt), who takes a shine to the widowed Margene. Though nothing goes quite as planned, friendship helps smooth the bumpy ride from Idaho to California--and beyond. The characters in Bonneville may be older and wiser than the women of Thelma and Louise or Fried Green Tomatoes, in which Bates appeared, but this smaller-scale effort shares the same sisterly values and the central trio establishes a touching rapport. Supplements include a making-of featurette, deleted and alternate scenes, and a short gag reel. --Kathleen C. Fennessy
Beyond Bonneville on DVD
Watch Little Miss Sunshine on DVD
Check out Imagine Me & You on DVD
Stills from Bonneville (Click for larger image)
Login
Add tags