Sam & Kate Movie Review

It is a truth universally acknowledged that as we grow up, our parents grow old. It is a reality that I have slowly (and sometimes painfully) learned over the past decade or so.

In the 2022 film, Sam & Kate, Sam (Jake Hoffman) has returned to his small town to take care of his widowed and aging father, Bill (Dustin Hoffman). There, he meets Kate (Schuyler Fisk) and her mother Tina (Cissy Spacek). As Kate and Sam deal with their respective parents, the secrets from their past come to light and nearly break the tenuous bonds of romance.

There is no on-screen chemistry like those of IRL parents and children. That innate understanding of one another radiates from the screen. I definitely recognized and appreciated the struggle that Sam and Kate are going through. Recognizing your parent’s mortality is a very hard pill to swallow.

Overall, I liked the movie. It is not grand or colorful, but it has a quiet truth about it that we can all relate to.

Do I recommend it? I am leaning toward yes.

Sam & Kate is currently streaming on Hulu.

Flashback Friday-The Baby-Sitters Club (1995)

For many young book worms, The Baby-Sitters Club was a must read at a certain age.  Several generations of young girls have come of age reading and loving the series by Ann M. Martin.

In 1995, the books were made into a movie. The cast of then up and coming actresses included Larisa Oleynik as hippie Dawn, Rachael Leigh Cook as shy Mary Anne and Schuyler Fisk as tomboy Kristy. The premise of the movie is that while the girls are running a summer camp for the kids in the neighborhood, they are dealing with the growing pains that comes with early adolescence.

While some adult critics at the time might have dismissed the film, fans of the books (myself included) love it. Unlike other movies that are based on novels, The Baby-Sitters Club was true to its source material in narrative, character development and casting.

Do I recommend it? Yes