Wanda wants to take care of everyone in her life. She barely has time for herself, not that she would know what to do with it anyway.
Chuck says:
To those on the outside, Wanda is an enabler who does more harm than good where her children are concerned. When her extremely pregnant daughter Sarah calls, distraught and certain she has killed her baby, she drops everything to rush to her side. Then, there’s her son Mark, who’s had substance abuse problems and refuses to take responsibility for whatever he does. Taking him to his counseling meetings and bailing him out of jail are not uncommon occurrences. And then there’s the matter of her mother, Grace, a hypochondriac who spends far too much time with her friends at the local casino. Wanda had become her de facto chauffeur service.
Brandan Walsh’s “I’ll Be Right There” is an examination of a modern mom, Wanda (Edie Falco), who cares for everyone in her orbit, yet does nothing for herself. She’s dancing as fast as she can, doing her best to keep all the plates that make up her life spinning, yet never feels she’s doing enough.
In addition to her mother and children, she has to deal with Henry (Bradley Whitford), her unreliable ex who’s moved on to a younger wife, more children and is suddenly unable to pitch in for his daughter’s upcoming nuptials. Yet, it isn’t as if Wanda has a lack of options in the romance department. She’s seeing Marshall (Michael Rapaport), a dependable, but rather bland bar owner, as well as Sophie (Sepideh Moafi) a local English professor. She wants to end the former relationship while keeping the latter under wraps, though it too is far from satisfying.
“There” is a series of brilliantly realized, relatable moments that benefit greatly from the astute writing in Jim Beggarly’ screenplay and the sincere performances by the cast. Kayli Carter is wonderful as Sarah, on the verge of hysterics throughout but never grating. Somehow, she’s able to convey the humanity of her character as well as the comedy in her situation. As Mark, Charlie Tahan pulls off a similar trick, managing not to foster enmity in the viewer despite his frustrating, self-destructive behavior. Their greatest contribution is they allow the viewer to understand, just why Wanda would go to such great lengths for them.
Obviously, this is an actors’ showcase and the strength of the film lies in the cast’s ability to render small moments, powerfully. Conversations, breakdowns, heartaches and small triumphs are all on display, brilliantly observed and captured. The humor in the trials these people go through – none of them as earthshattering as they think – is showcased throughout, making them all the more relatable. And Falco is in the middle of it all, conveying a degree of patience that’s saintly, providing the stable middle for her castmates to revolve around. Hardly a showy performance, it’s a necessary and selfless one, vital to the film’s success.
The movie is not a condemnation of Wanda’s behavior, which seemingly fosters co-dependency, but rather a celebration of it. A third-act monologue allows her to express the satisfaction she gets from being leaned on, a situation she, Walsh and Baggarly contend will ultimately benefit her children. While that argument doesn’t hold water, Wanda’s justification of her actions does. That she embraces her role and finds satisfaction in it needs no defense. In the end, “There” is a modest tribute to those quiet, consistent family members that are often taken for granted, those we often realize we can’t do without until they are gone.
3 Stars
