Ricki and the Flash

Last updated

Ricki and the Flash
Ricki and the Flash poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Jonathan Demme
Written by Diablo Cody
Produced by
Starring
Cinematography Declan Quinn
Edited byWyatt Smith
Production
companies
Distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing
Release date
  • August 7, 2015 (2015-08-07)
Running time
101 minutes [3]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$18 million [4] [5]
Box office$41.3 million [4]

Ricki and the Flash is a 2015 American musical comedy-drama film directed by Jonathan Demme and written by Diablo Cody, about a woman who leaves her family to become a rock star and later gets a chance to make amends. The film stars Meryl Streep, Mamie Gummer, Kevin Kline, Sebastian Stan, Rick Springfield, and Audra McDonald. The film marks Streep and Kline's third collaboration after Sophie's Choice (1982) and A Prairie Home Companion (2006). It was Demme's final narrative film before his death in April 2017. [6]

Contents

Principal photography began on October 13, 2014, in Rye, New York. TriStar Pictures financed, and released the film on August 7, 2015. The film received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the performances of the cast but criticised its screenplay and execution, and grossed $41 million against its $18–30 million production budget.

Plot

Ricki chased her dreams of becoming a famous rock star by abandoning her family. She gets a chance to put things right when her ex-husband Pete asks her to visit Indianapolis and help their estranged daughter Julie through a difficult time.

Ricki has a rock band that plays a regular gig at a small bar, when she is not working as a cashier to make ends meet. Julie recently attempted suicide because her husband cheated on her and is divorcing her. Despite being broke, Ricki comes to Indianapolis to help her daughter, but Julie is hostile. Likewise, her two sons are hostile and unwelcoming. One has come out as gay and the other recently became engaged, though no one told their mother. Still, Ricki gets through to Julie.

Pete's second wife, Maureen, returns unexpectedly, confronting Ricki with some hard truths. She wasn't there for her children when they needed her and Maureen was. Ashamed, Ricki returns to her band in California angry and bitter, insulting her guitarist who is in love with her. He makes her realize he cares and they make love. Maureen sends Ricki an invitation to the son's wedding as an olive branch, but Ricki can't afford to go. Her boyfriend sells his best guitar to pay for the tickets.

Despite her attempts at reconciliation, she's clearly still an outsider. The wedding guests look askance at Ricki when she gets up to toast the bride and groom. As her gift, having no money, she has her band take over and play for the guests. Her son and his bride start the wedding dance and slowly the guests join in.

Cast

Production

Diablo Cody based the script in part on her mother-in-law Terry Cieri, who has fronted a New Jersey bar band for years. [7] [8] Cody said, "I watched her on stage so many times, and I thought to myself, 'This woman's life is a movie.'" [9] Cody specifically wrote the role of Ricki with Streep in her mind noting that actresses over 50 in Hollywood typically don't get complicated parts. [9] Ricki's daughter is played by Streep's daughter, Mamie Gummer [10] marking the third film the two have made together, after 1986's Heartburn and 2007's Evening ." [9]

Ricki and the Flash was dedicated to "Rick the Bass Player", which is the stage name for Rick Rosas who played "Buster", the Flash's bass player in the film, and who died in November 2014.

Filming

Filming was first set to begin on October 1, 2014, in New York City. [9] Principal photography officially began on October 13, 2014, in Rye, New York. [11] On October 14, Streep was spotted filming some scenes at Numi & Co. Hair Salon in Rye. On November 3, 2014, she was also seen filming in Nyack, New York. [12] The wedding sequence was shot at Untermyer Park in Yonkers, New York.

Release

On May 6, 2014, Sony's TriStar set the film for a June 26, 2015 release. [13] The release date was later changed to August 7, 2015. The film was chosen as the opening selection for the 2015 Locarno Film Festival which was held on August 5, 2015, in Locarno, Switzerland. [14]

Reception

Box office

Ricki and the Flash grossed $26.8 million in the United States, and $13.3 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $40.1 million, against a budget of $18 million. [4]

The film grossed $6.6 million from 1,603 theaters in its opening weekend, finishing 7th at the box office. The film added 461 theaters in its second week (a total of 2,064 screens), but dropped to ninth place with $4.6 million (a decline of 31 percent). In its third week the film grossed $3 million from 2,013 screens.

The film opened in Italy on September 11, 2015, and came in fifth place with a weekend total of $413,800.

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a rating of 64% based on 202 reviews, with an average rating of 6/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Meryl Streep's outstanding work helps Ricki and the Flash overcome its inconsistent tone and fairly-predictable premise." [15] Metacritic gives the film a weighted average score of 54 out of 100, based on 36 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". [16] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale. [17]

IGN gave the film a score of 7.8/10, saying, "Ricki and the Flash offers a breezy, heartwarming, if somewhat manufactured tale about an aging rocker reconnecting with her family". [18]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meryl Streep</span> American actress (born 1949)

Mary Louise "Meryl" Streep is an American actress. Known for her versatility and accent adaptability, she has been described as "the best actress of her generation". She has received numerous accolades throughout her career spanning over four decades, including a record 21 Academy Award nominations, winning three, and a record 33 Golden Globe Award nominations, winning eight.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kevin Kline</span> American actor

Kevin Delaney Kline is an American actor. Kline is known for his over five decade career as a leading man on stage and screen. He is the recipient of an Academy Award and three Tony Awards, and has been nominated for two British Academy Film Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and five Golden Globe Awards. In 2003, he was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame.

<i>Heartburn</i> (film) 1986 film by Mike Nichols

Heartburn is a 1986 American comedy-drama film directed and produced by Mike Nichols, starring Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson. The screenplay, written by Nora Ephron, is based on her novel of the same name, a semi-biographical account of her marriage to Carl Bernstein. The film marked the debut of Kevin Spacey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Don Gummer</span> American sculptor (born 1946)

Don Gummer is an American sculptor. His early work concentrated on table-top and wall-mounted sculpture. In the mid-1980s, he shifted his focus to large free-standing works, often in bronze. In the 1990s, he added a variety of other materials, such as stainless steel, aluminum and stained glass. His interest in large outdoor works also led him to an interest in public art. He is married to Meryl Streep, although they have been separated since 2017.

<i>Sophies Choice</i> (film) 1982 drama film

Sophie's Choice is a 1982 American psychological drama film directed and written by Alan J. Pakula, adapted from William Styron's 1979 novel Sophie's Choice. The film stars Meryl Streep as Zofia "Sophie" Zawistowska, a Polish immigrant to America with a dark secret from her past who shares a boarding house in Brooklyn with her tempestuous lover Nathan, and young writer Stingo. It also features Rita Karin, Stephen D. Newman and Josh Mostel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diablo Cody</span> American writer and producer

Brook Maurio, known professionally by the pen name Diablo Cody, is an American writer and producer. She gained recognition for her candid blog and subsequent memoir, Candy Girl: A Year in the Life of an Unlikely Stripper (2005). Cody received critical acclaim for her screenwriting debut film, Juno (2007), winning the Academy Award, and the BAFTA Award.

Neil Citron is a Toronto-born Canadian guitarist, Grammy Award-winning recording engineer, and songwriter who has played with Lana Lane, and briefly with heavy metal band Quiet Riot in 2006, among numerous other music industry credits. He has also worked on the films My Big Fat Greek Wedding, That Thing You Do!, and Ricki and the Flash.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mamie Gummer</span> American actress (born 1983)

Mary Willa "Mamie" Gummer is an American actress. She starred in the title role of The CW series Emily Owens, M.D. (2012–2013), and played the recurring role of Nancy Crozier on The Good Wife (2010–2015) and its spin-off, The Good Fight (2018). She has also appeared in the films Evening (2007), Side Effects (2013), Cake (2014), and Ricki and the Flash (2015). Gummer was nominated for the 2016 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play for the original production of Ugly Lies the Bone. She is the daughter of Don Gummer and Meryl Streep. Dr. Death Television

<i>Julie & Julia</i> 2009 film by Nora Ephron

Julie & Julia is a 2009 American biographical comedy-drama film written and directed by Nora Ephron starring Meryl Streep and Amy Adams in the title roles with Stanley Tucci, Chris Messina, and Linda Emond in supporting roles. The film contrasts the life of chef Julia Child in the early years of her culinary career with the life of young New Yorker Julie Powell, who aspires to cook all 524 recipes in Child's cookbook in 365 days, a challenge she described on her popular blog, which made her a published author.

Grace Jane Gummer is an American actress. She received a Theatre World Award for her Broadway debut in the 2011 revival of Arcadia. Her television work includes recurring roles in The Newsroom and American Horror Story: Freak Show, and regular roles in Extant and Mr. Robot.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meryl Streep on screen and stage</span>

Meryl Streep is an American actress who has had an extensive career in film, television, and stage. She made her stage debut in 1975 with The Public Theater production of Trelawny of the 'Wells'. She went on to perform several roles on stage in the 1970s, gaining a Tony Award nomination for her role in 27 Wagons Full of Cotton (1976). In 1977, Streep made her film debut with a brief role alongside Jane Fonda in Julia. A supporting role in the war drama The Deer Hunter (1978) proved to be a breakthrough for Streep; she received her first Academy Award nomination for it. She won the award the following year for playing a troubled wife in the top-grossing drama Kramer vs. Kramer (1979). In 1978, Streep played a German, "Aryan" woman married to a Jewish man in Nazi Germany in the television miniseries Holocaust, which earned her a Primetime Emmy Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meryl Streep in the 2000s</span>

Meryl Streep throughout the 2000s appeared in many cinematic and theatrical productions. In 2001, Streep's voice appeared in the animated film A.I. Artificial Intelligence. Streep that same year co-hosted the annual Nobel Peace Prize Concert, as well as appeared in the popular play The Seagull. In 2002, Streep appeared in the films Adaptation. and The Hours. In 2003, Streep appeared unaccredited in the comedy Stuck on You, and starred in the HBO play adaptation Angels in America. In 2004, Streep was awarded the AFI Life Achievement Award, and in that same year, she starred in the films The Manchurian Candidate and Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. In 2005, Streep starred in the film Prime. Streep began 2006 with the film A Prairie Home Companion, and that same year, she starred in The Devil Wears Prada and the stage production Mother Courage and Her Children. In 2007, Streep appeared in the films Dark Matter, Rendition, Evening, and Lions for Lambs. In 2008, Streep starred in the films Mamma Mia! and Doubt. In 2009, Streep starred in the films Julie & Julia and It's Complicated, as well as loaning her voice to the animated film Fantastic Mr. Fox.

<i>The Giver</i> (film) 2014 film by Phillip Noyce

The Giver is a 2014 American dystopian drama film directed by Phillip Noyce and starring Jeff Bridges, Brenton Thwaites, Odeya Rush, Meryl Streep, Alexander Skarsgård, Katie Holmes, Cameron Monaghan, Taylor Swift, and Emma Tremblay. The film is based on the 1993 young adult novel of the same name by Lois Lowry. The Giver premiered on August 11, 2014, and was released theatrically in the United States on August 15, 2014. It grossed $67 million on a $25 million budget and received a People's Choice Award nomination for "Favorite Dramatic Movie".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TriStar Productions</span> Film and television production company

TriStar Productions(TSP) is an American film and television production company, a division of TriStar Pictures and a joint venture between Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) and former 20th Century Fox chairman Tom Rothman.

<i>Into the Woods</i> (film) 2014 film produced by Walt Disney Pictures

Into the Woods is a 2014 American musical fantasy film directed by Rob Marshall, with a screenplay by James Lapine based on his and Stephen Sondheim's 1987 Broadway musical of the same name. Produced by Walt Disney Pictures, it features an ensemble cast that includes Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt, James Corden, Anna Kendrick, Chris Pine, Tracey Ullman, Christine Baranski, Lilla Crawford, Daniel Huttlestone, MacKenzie Mauzy, Billy Magnussen, and Johnny Depp. The film is centered on a childless couple who set out to end a curse placed on them by a vengeful witch, and the characters are forced to experience the unintended consequences of their actions. It is inspired by the Grimm Brothers' fairy tales of "Little Red Riding Hood", and the Charles Perrault fairy tales "Cinderella", "Jack and the Beanstalk", and "Rapunzel".

<i>Suffragette</i> (film) 2015 British film by Sarah Gavron

Suffragette is a 2015 British historical drama film about women's suffrage in the United Kingdom, directed by Sarah Gavron and written by Abi Morgan. The film stars Carey Mulligan, Helena Bonham Carter, Brendan Gleeson, Anne-Marie Duff, Ben Whishaw, and Meryl Streep.

Louisa Jacobson Gummer is an American actress. A daughter of actress Meryl Streep, she graduated from the Yale School of Drama with an MFA in acting. She became known for starring in the HBO period drama series The Gilded Age (2022–present).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rick Rosas</span> Musical artist

Rick "Rick the Bass Player" Rosas was an American musician, and one of the most sought after studio session musicians in Los Angeles. Though largely known for his long collaboration with Neil Young, throughout his career he also played with Joe Walsh, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Rivers, Ron Wood, Etta James, and the short-lived reunion of the Buffalo Springfield, among others. He performed as a bass player with The Flash in Jonathan Demme's 2015 film Ricki and The Flash. The band was composed of guitarist Rick Springfield, drummer Joe Vitale, and keyboardist Bernie Worrell, backing up Meryl Streep, as "Ricki", on vocals and guitar.

Mary Wolf Wilkinson Streep was an American fine-artist and art editor. She was the mother of actress Meryl Streep.

<i>Florence Foster Jenkins</i> (film) 2016 film directed by Stephen Frears

Florence Foster Jenkins is a 2016 biographical film directed by Stephen Frears and written by Nicholas Martin and Julia Kogan. It stars Meryl Streep as Florence Foster Jenkins, a New York heiress known for her generosity and poor singing. Hugh Grant plays her manager and long-time companion, St. Clair Bayfield. Other cast members include Simon Helberg, Rebecca Ferguson, and Nina Arianda.

References

  1. ↑ Sneider, Jeff (June 17, 2014). "Kevin Kline, Mamie Gummer in Negotiations to Join Meryl Streep in 'Ricki and the Flash' (Exclusive)". TheWrap. Retrieved October 16, 2018.
  2. ↑ "Ricki and the Flash (2015) - Financial Information". The Numbers. Retrieved October 16, 2018.
  3. ↑ "RICKI AND THE FLASH (PG)". British Board of Film Classification . August 7, 2015. Retrieved August 7, 2015.
  4. 1 2 3 "Ricki and the Flash (2015)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
  5. ↑ FilmL.A. (June 15, 2016). "2015 Feature Film Study" (PDF). Retrieved June 16, 2016.
  6. ↑ Fear, David; Reed, Ryan (April 26, 2017). "Jonathan Demme, Silence of the Lambs and Philadelphia director, dead at 73". Rolling Stone . Archived from the original on April 26, 2017. Retrieved April 26, 2017.
  7. ↑ Biese, Alex (July 24, 2015). "Meryl Streep plays Toms River mom in new film". Asbury Park Press . Retrieved July 29, 2015.
  8. ↑ Miller, Julie (August 5, 2015). "Meet the Woman Who Inspired Meryl Streep's Ricki and the Flash Character". Vanity Fair . Retrieved September 11, 2015.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Abramovitch, Seth (August 1, 2014). "Meryl Streep Learning Guitar for Diablo Cody Movie". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved October 17, 2014.
  10. ↑ Sneider, Jeff (June 17, 2014). "Kevin Kline, Mamie Gummer in Negotiations to Join Meryl Streep in 'Ricki and the Flash'". TheWrap . Retrieved October 17, 2014.
  11. ↑ "Meryl Streep filming 'Ricki and the Flash' in Rye, NY". onlocationvacations.com. October 15, 2014. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
  12. ↑ Muchnick, Jeanne (October 16, 2014). "Meryl Streep Films Movie At Rye's Numi Hair Salon". The White Plains Daily Voice . Retrieved October 17, 2014.
  13. ↑ "TriStar Productions Dates Its First Two Films for 2015". ComingSoon.net. May 6, 2014. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
  14. ↑ "Meryl Streep Musical Dramedy 'Ricki And The Flash' To Open Locarno Film Festival". Deadline Hollywood . May 6, 2014. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
  15. ↑ "Ricki and the Flash". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved May 12, 2022.
  16. ↑ "Ricki and the Flash". Metacritic . CBS Interactive . Retrieved August 7, 2015.
  17. ↑ "'Mission: Impossible' Beats 'Fantastic Four'; 'The Gift' Unwraps $11.8M, 'Ricki And The Flash,' 'Shaun The Sheep' Results — Box Office Final". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  18. ↑ "Ricki and the Flash Review - IGN". Uk.ign.com. August 6, 2015. Retrieved February 9, 2018.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.