After a devastating loss, witty and proudly troublesome Eleanor Morgenstein, 94, tells a tale that takes on its own dangerous life.

‘Eleanor the Great’ marks Scarlett Johansson’s feature debut as a director, telling the story of Eleanor (June Squibb), an elderly woman who, after the death of her best friend Bessie, moves in with her daughter (Jessica Hecht), an upheaval that leaves her unsure of her place in the world, and to be frank, a little bored. When her daughter drops her off at a Jewish Community Centre one day, she accidentally wanders into a Holocaust survivors’ support group, where through a misunderstanding and awkwardness, she ends up recounting her late friend’s survival story as her own. This sets in motion a chain of events that rapidly spiral out of Eleanor’s control, and this thread runs through the majority of the film.

The film’s emotional weight rests heavily on June Squibb, who is superb, delivering one of the strongest performances of her career at an age when most actors have stopped getting leading roles, never mind starting to get them! She plays Eleanor as prickly, lonely and stubborn, yet never unapproachable, allowing the audience to understand her need for connection even as her actions grow increasingly uncomfortable. She forms a friendship with a young woman (Erin Kellyman) who is also grieving and both of them find strength through the others company and advice, even as their relationship is atypical. Johansson’s direction is confident and empathetic, and the script engages thoughtfully with themes of aging, grief and Jewish identity, a topic Johansson has spoken about at length recently at a time when antisemitism is on the rise. The film is particularly effective when it lingers on the fear of becoming invisible with age, and how losing a person so close to you can turn your world completely off its axis.

Where ‘Eleanor the Great’ stumbles slightly is in its tone, which drifts toward the overly sentimental, particularly as it nears its conclusion. I was a little uneasy in how the film ultimately softens its view of Eleanor’s deception, seeming reluctant to fully confront the consequences of her actions in favour of delivering a broadly positive emotional conclusion. While this doesn’t undo the film’s many strengths, it does leave the sense that something more challenging has been left on the table, but to be fair to Johansson, that isn’t quite the film she is trying to make. Regardless, ‘Eleanor the Great’ is a thoughtful, well-acted debut, anchored by June Squibb’s strong central performance.

Rating: 3/5

Directed By: Scarlett Johansson

Starring: June Squibb, Erin Kellyman, Jessica Hecht, Rita Zohar, Will Price and Chiwetel Ejiofor

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt30268321/