katrinaolson.ca - The Time of Their Lives

Posted on Saturday, October 21, 2017 at 09:00 AM

The Time of Their Lives

Review by Katrina Olson-Mottahed x CalgaryMovies.com

A KO Review by Emily Mody

The Time of Their Lives is a feature length narrative film directed by Roger Goldby. The story follows two women in the winter of their lives. Helen (played by Joan Collins) is a former Hollywood star who is unhappy with her current situation in life. On a day trip to the beach she stumbles upon a new friend, Priscilla (played by Pauline Collins). The two women connect over the complications of their pasts. Without a dime to her name and a level of desperation that makes for the best vacations Helen asks Priscilla if she will travel with her to France so she can attend an old friend’s funeral. Priscilla drops all of the responsibilities and obligations she has and they start their trek. Things continue to go awry as they make their way to France and it leads to many comical and amusing side adventures.

To be honest, I am really not sure what I think about this film. I guess the key word would probably be indifference. The Time of Their Lives was a cute story about friendship and it was a little bit silly. I think this type of film would appeal to a very specific demographic of people and not many others unfortunately. I cared very deeply for Priscilla’s character. I thought she was sincere, sweet, and I wanted her to be strong. This was contrasted with Helen’s character however that I did not care for at all. She had very few redeeming qualities and she actually made the film difficult to watch. Helen was a horrible person who used everyone in her life to better her situation. Without revealing spoilers, I think the writers did try to make Helen more relatable by the end but it just was not enough for me. She still came off extremely selfish. There was also little to no chemistry between the two actresses. I found it extremely difficult to believe they were friends. The only thing that seemed to keep these two women tied together was their common dissatisfaction with their lives.

I suppose the natural film comparison to The Time of Their Lives would be Thelma and Louise but to be honest this did not feel like that at all. The Time of Their Lives honestly did not even really feel like a road trip film. The film that comes to mind for me is 9 to 5 directed by Colin Higgins. Both films share a similar feel and tone. I think the friendship that was accomplished between the characters in 9 to 5 was the ultimate goal for Helen and Priscilla but it did not materialize. 9 to 5 is a much better executed version of a similar story.

The Time of Their Lives runs a total of 104 minutes. It is rated PG and is therefore suitable for almost all audience members. I think that overall this was film was a decent enough way to spend a couple hours but it certainly is not life changing. 

Calgary Showtimes:  Time of Their Lives, The >