This film has one of the most amazing casts we've seen in a good long while and the fact that it was shot, during Covid, mostly on a ship in about a month is equally impressive. Typical Soderbergh, there are a lot of people sitting around talking. Given that it is Meryl Streep, Dianne Wiest, Candice Bergen and Gemma Chan doing most of the talking, I'm fine listening. It's a good way to explore the deep-seated issues between old friends and the problematic relationships of new ones. The sticking point is that this kind of thing can only go so deep. When we get to the "real stuff" in the film the emotion is muted. Soderbergh literally pulls the camera back and distances the viewer from the emotional fallout. In the end Wiest's character seems to have little relevance, Bergen's character doesn't get any resolution and even the sweet nephew, played by Christopher Fitzgerald, comes off as petty and a bit shallow. It's interesting to watch for a time but I found myself asking, when it was over, what was the point? In good literature a character makes a journey, physically, psychologically. In Soderbergh's films people remain basically flawed, sitting at a table drinking and talking, musing about life but not really living it.
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