The Savages coming to DVD

Widely acknowledged for its two Academy Award nominations (Best Original Screenplay and Best Actress in a Leading Role) and for artiste-director Tamara Jenkins’ welcome return to the big screen after more than a decade, The Savages will be released on DVD on 26th May 2008.

Starring Academy Award®, BAFTA® and Golden Globe® winner Philip Seymour Hoffman (Capote, The Talented Mr. Ripley) and Academy Award® nominated actress Laura Linney (Kinsey, The Truman Show) THE SAVAGES is a “richly nuanced American comedy, with two acting talents working at their absolute peak” (Empire).

The last thing the two Savage siblings ever wanted to do was look back at their difficult family history. Managing to escape their father’s domineering grasp, they are now firmly cocooned in their own complicated lives. Wendy (Linney) is a struggling New York amateur playwright, forced to work boring temporary office jobs to pay the rent. She spends her days applying for grants, stealing office supplies and dating her very married neighbour, Larry (Peter Friedman). Jon (Seymour Hoffman) is a neurotic college drama professor writing books on obscure subjects in Buffalo. Then comes the call that informs them that the father they have long feared and avoided, Lenny Savage (Philip Bosco) is slowly being consumed by dementia and they are the only ones that can help.

THE SAVAGES is a realistic, yet comic study of a dysfunctional family. Scriptwriter Tamara Jenkins’ approach to the subject is upbeat and resilient, defying the grave sentimentalism that often underpins difficult issues in film. In this hopeful and optimistic work, Hoffman and Linney create two authentic characters that are unique and fascinating to watch, constructing a fine balance between humour and tragedy that provides many a heartfelt and profound comedy moment.

Extras: Featurette, 2 Extended Scenes, Stills gallery.