The Hot Flashes: DVD Review
The Movie:
Brooke Shields, Daryl Hannah, Virginia Madsen, Camryn Manheim, and Wanda Sykes star in this film about a basketball team of unappreciated middle-aged Texas women, all former high school champs, who challenge the current high school girls’ state champs to raise money for breast cancer prevention. Sparks fly as the women go to comic extremes to prove themselves on and off the court, become a national media sensation, and gain a new lease on life.
To say that this film is “Bridesmaids for Generation X” is a bit of a stretch but it doesn’t mean this film isn’t funny. It’s just a different kind of funny. There’s a lot of female humor but at the same time there’s plenty of all around humor as well. The story is one that we’ve seen before with a group coming together to go against and better, faster, younger team. The only difference is the cause they are doing it for. They play these basketball games to raise money to keep a mobile mammogram vehicle going and that’s not something you see in your usual movies. The cool thing I thought was the a cast such as this coming together for a film. I’ve seen all of these veteran actresses in various films over the years and for them to come together for a comedy film with a message like this was interesting. Shields played the perfect “leader” role in the film and yet I could see that she played off the performances of the rest of the cast as well. I think it was an all around pretty decent film and I think I liked it more so because there was an actual REASON for them to do this other than “Hey, lets go show those young kids whose boss!”.
Special Features:
There are 2 features on this disc and both are sponsored by the American Cancer Society
Public Service Announcements – A pair (no pun intended) of PSAs with the cast of the film regarding Breast Cancer Awareness.
ACS At 100: Helping People Get Well – A very quick feature that shows how the ACS can benefit people and guide them on their journey to get better again.
