Mothers and daughters

During the hubbub of the last couple of weeks we did manage to see one film, “Learning to Drive.” This is a sweet story about a 50-something year old professional named Wendy (Patricia Clarkson) whose husband suddenly leaves her for a younger woman. Being a Manhattanite, Wendy has never had a driver’s license, but now that she is single, she wants to be able to visit her daughter, who lives on a farm in Vermont, and engages Darwan (Ben Kingsley), a driving instructor to teach her to drive. A Sikh Indian, Darwan was a professor in India before being jailed for his religious beliefs. He was able to obtain political asylum in the United States but unable to obtain an academic position.

Perhaps because she is learning so late in life, or perhaps because she is resentful about the cause of her having to acquire this skill, she is not what you would call a willing student or a quick study. While Wendy works to master the rules of the road, Darwan works to master the ways of America and of women as he enters into a marriage arranged by family back home. Although the ending is fairly predictable, it is an interesting journey. The film did not receive terribly high marks on Rotten Tomatoes but we thought it was quite charming and enjoyable.

Wendy’s daughter, Tasha, was played by a young actress we had never seen before, but when the movie ended we said to each other “she is a dead ringer for Meryl Streep.” We watched the credits and found her name is Grace Gummer. That name did not ring any particular bells for us, but it came as no surprise to find that she is the daughter of Don Gummer, an American sculptor, and Meryl Streep. Here are mother and daughter side by side. Meryl Streep’s shoes cannot be easy ones to fill, but we will look forward to seeing more of Grace Gummer.

There is a lot on the news this week about the upcoming visit of Pope Francis. You probably thought I was going to say “about the presidential candidates,” but that is far too serious a topic for me to tackle. This piece by comedian Jim Gaffigan, shown on “CBS Sunday Morning,” really does capture the Pope’s visit well, with warmth and humor.

Enjoy the week as we finally start transitioning into fall.

Love,

Rebecca