Boynton Beach Club
Early in the charming romantic comedyBoynton Beach Club, one randy 70-something guy makes a heartfelt toast to "sex after 60"--in all of its untidy, slightly saggy, unpredictable glory. And so is this film, by Susan Seidelman, as much a toast to love among the retiree set as herDesperately Seeking Susanwas a valentine to Madonna and the early '80s hipster scene. The all-star cast, including Joe Bologna, Dyan Cannon, Sally Kellerman, Brenda Vaccaro, and Michael Nouri, explore the nuances of grief, loss, heartbreak, and horniness in a retirement community in Boynton Beach, Fla. The usual jokes about senior communities--the outnumbering of men by women, the orchestrated community-center social lives, the bad driving--are here, but with a twist. Seidelman is just as interested in showing that some things, like schoolgirl crushes, one-night-stand cads, and finding love when you think you're not even looking, are as universal whether you're 17 or 70. While some of the cast seem almost distracting at the beginning of the film, because of apparently drastic plastic surgery (Cannon and Kellerman, especially), by the film's end they blend in with the rest of the cast, just as facelifts coexist with sagging jawlines in real Florida towns.Boynton Beach Clubhas a big heart, and the heart, thankfully, never shows its age.--A.T. Hurley