Cloudburst

Thom Fitzgerald adapts his own 2010 play for this romantic road trip comedy starring Oscar winners Olympia Dukakis and Brenda Fricker as Stella and Dot, respectively, two Maine retirees who have lived together for 31 years. With Dot's eyesight failing, the tequila-swigging Stella serves as her eyes, describing phenomena such as clouds, to her partner. Dot's granddaughter, Molly (Kristin Booth), has a hard time accepting their relationship, and obtains a court order to place Dot in a home after she suffers another medical setback, so Stella busts her out, and the pair drive to Canada to get married. Along the way, they pick up Prentice (Ryan Doucette), a stripper en route from New York to visit his ailing mother. During the trip, the trio tangles with truck stop waitresses, suspicious border guards, a rapidly rising tide, and an angry naked man. With each challenge, however, they grow closer, creating more of a family with each other than with their blood relatives. Unfortunately, Molly and her police officer husband Tommy (Michael McPhee) follow them to Nova Scotia, throwing a wrench in their plans. Cloudburst suffers from some unnecessarily crass dialogue and a sometimes awkward fit between the comedy and the drama, but Fitzgerald's heart is in the right place with regards to the benefits of gay marriage and respect for the aged, making this multiple award-winning film a strong optional purchase. (K. Fennessy)