I'll See You In My Dreams (2015) * *

Directed by:  Brett Haley

Starring:  Blythe Danner, Sam Elliott, June Squibb, Martin Starr, Rhea Perlman, Mary Kay Place, Malin Akerman

I'll See You In My Dreams is a bland movie.    The performances are grounded, realistic ones by actors who could be portraying real people you may run into at a country club, golf course, or in the supermarket.     These people are there and mean something to someone, but I do not necessarily want to see a movie about them.    I'll See You In My Dreams is filled with people like that.     They are just...ordinary.   

The movie stars Blythe Danner as Carol, a seventyish widow whose life is one big rut.    She tends to her garden, walks her beloved dog, plays bridge with her friends, and drinks one or two too many glasses of scotch in a given day.    Her dog dies and it is the most heartbreaking scene in the movie.    It is not a good sign when we care more about the dog than most of the people.    Carol's life continues on this path until she meets two people who will jostle her out of her comfort zone:  Lloyd (Starr), a would-be songwriter whose real job is pool cleaning and Bill (Elliott), who is straightforward about his desire to date Carol while forever chomping on an unlit cigar.  

Carol's relationship with Lloyd starts out as friendly chit chat, but we sense it could become something more when they go on a date to a local bar where there is karaoke night.    Lloyd sings "I Think We're Alone Now" in a way Tiffany or Tommy James never intended, while Carol belts out a standard admirably.    Carol was once a singer who abandoned her dreams when she married her now-deceased lawyer husband.    She isn't bad and may even have a shot on America's Got Talent.

Lloyd is clearly smitten with Carol, although Carol has to detect this, she does seem to realize she is about forty years older than him.    The smoldering tension does enliven their scenes together.    Bill is much closer to Carol's age bracket and he is nice, honest, and confident.     He genuinely likes Carol and she seems to like him, which serves to spring Carol from her doldrums even for a while.    However, the screenplay decides to put an end to the relationship before we see which direction it will take.  

Blythe Danner is a well-respected actress and the mother of Gwyneth Paltrow.   She has been in many movies and TV projects.    She is skilled, but truth be told she does not inspire compulsive watching in this movie.   She has excelled in roles as an exasperated wife, like she was in The Great Santini (1980), Meet The Parents (2000), and The Prince of Tides (1991).   Here, she's fine, but that's about it.  

Sam Elliott and Martin Starr provide I'll See You....with shots in the arm in two distinct performances featuring men of certain ages that both find they need Carol.    But what exactly inspires such needs?    She is pleasant enough, but not someone who would inspire these men to drop everything to be around her.     The dynamic between Carol and her friends plays like the Sex and the City girls at mature age.    Their scenes revolve around Carol as the center, but the other three women are far more watchable.    They do not have any scenes without Carol in them.    It is fun to see Perlman, Place, and Squibb completely steal the scene.    It is as if their lives stop until Carol graces them with her presence again.

I'll See You In My Dreams clearly thinks Carol is much more of an interesting person than we do.    We are supposed to be moved when she musters up the strength to buy a new dog, or smoke medical marijuana with her pals, or have sex after a near 20-year drought.    However, I simply could not bring myself to feel much of anything about this blah person.    She is the type of woman whom you may say hi to when gathering your mail, but then you both would go about your merry way without giving each other a second thought.