Late Bloomers is a small film that hasn’t attracted much attention. It got off to an annoying start, but by the end of the story it was well worth the time. It’s the story of how two strangers in adjoining hospital beds came to love each other.
Late Bloomers starts with Louise (Karen Gillan) drunk and stalking her former boyfriend. She tries to climb in his window and falls. Her hip breaks. I really didn’t like Louise at the beginning, but as the story progressed she had a nice growth arc.
Next to Louise in the hospital was elderly Antonina (Malgorzata Zajaczkowska as Margaret Sophie Stein). Antonina spoke only Polish and she was a serious grouch. She threw things at Louise and stuck her tongue out at her.
They were released from the hospital on the same day, waiting for the same bus to get home. From there the two women, vastly different in age and background, are tied together in interesting ways. They prickle and fuss and eventually learn to love each other. The failures of Louise’s smart phone translation app don’t stop them from communicating somehow.
Antonina’s granddaughter (Michelle Twarowska) hires Louise to care for her. Louise lives with her roommate Brick (Jermaine Fowler). One day she brings Antonina home with her. Brick and Louise take Antonina with her rolling walker out for a night of drinking.
Antonina gets hurt. That causes quite a ruckus.
As Louise interacts with Antonina, we slowly learn Louise’s story. Frequent phone calls from her dad (Kevin Nealon) about her mom’s (Talia Balsam) medical condition reveal what her underlying problem is. The reason she is so kind and helpful to Antonina becomes clear as she struggles to deal with her own family situation.
The slow unfolding in this movie, written by Anna Greenfield and directed by Lisa Steen, is beautifully done. The character arcs make sense and the resolution of the story is heartwarming and beautiful.
If you’d like to give this one a try, you can stream it on Prime Video. Please share your impressions in the comments if you do watch it.
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I agree. This is a lovely, touching story. Thank you for suggesting it. Christine
Glad you enjoyed it.