The Best You Can review by Bobby Blakey
Despite being married since 1988 and have both had stellar careers in both TV and film. Together they haven’t shared the screen since 2004, but that has now changed with their latest film The Best You Can. The film co-stars Brittany O’Grady, Ray Romano and Judd Hirsch from A Little Help and The King of Queens director Michael J. Weithorn, but does their real life connection bring that extra special something to the story or will it fail to find what’s missing?
The Best You Can follows Cynthia Rand, a buttoned-up New York City urologist married to a brilliant Watergate prosecutor, Warren Rand, 25 years her senior, has her neatly ordered world turned upside down when he begins to slide into dementia. Stan Olszewski, a sharp but chronically underachieving security guard, drifts through life without much direction, his current goal to find connection with his alienated 20- something daughter Sammi. Their worlds collide when Stan thwarts a robbery at Cynthia's stately Brooklyn home. What begins as a chance encounter quickly evolves into an unconventional but deep friendship, built on late-night texts, candid confessions, and irreverent humor. As their bond grows their relationship veers into an unexpected romantic entanglement, upending their lives and forcing them to reconsider what they truly want - and what they might be missing.
This is a straightforward romantic drama that sticks close to the usual tropes of the genre. It could have easily gotten lost in the shuffle and failed to bring much to it for this exact reason, but the real-life chemistry of Sedgwick and Bacon elevated it to something more. They bring that natural connection to this film that brings realism to this friendship and something deeper in the connection between them. It’s not just the romantic nature you expect but a deeper connection that people find when in varying circumstances. It is that
missing piece in their existence that needs to be filled and these two use their real love to make it work.
The story is simple on the surface, but offers up depth dealing with loneliness, loss, forgiveness and so many other deep emotions. It allows these characters to not just fall into all the usual faults and directions even though it walks that line of it. You know where this is likely all heading, but that element of their friendship complete with long texting sessions just feels like something else and it makes the film work.
This isn’t anything we haven’t seen before, but it works for what it is and the great performances by these two Hollywood veterans along with the supporting cast. It’s a simple film with a big heart and life elements that everyone can relate to on some level and worth checking out.
Decide for yourself and check out The Best You Can on digital now from Sony Home Entertainment.