Sundance 2024 - Thelma

Evan D.

Aging has long been a fascination of cinema as it is the one affliction inescapable from all. Not so equal parts a badge of honor and a sign of weakness, reaching your 80th or 90th decade elicits starkly different treatment. The elderly are targeted by scammers, preying on unfamiliarity with technology and an assumption of mental deterioration. As if that is not bad enough, children and grandchildren begin to treat their elders like they’re fragile. Both of these situations are where the titular Thelma (June Squibb) finds herself in Josh Margolin’s feature debut. 

Thelma is a 90 and still independent a few years after losing her husband of many years. Her grandson Daniel (the always impressive Fred Hechinger) might not have it all figured out yet, but he helps her with the computer before settling in for a Mission: Impossible movie together. Given their bond it makes sense that Thelma would hand over obscene amounts of cash when a scammer calls duplicating Danny’s voice. Embarrassed by the affair and infantilized by her own family, Thelma sets off to take back what was stolen by the scammers and earn back some dignity that age had unfairly taken. 

Littered with all the tropes of old people, from poor hearing and slow movement, Thelma can feel rote at times. Margolin makes effort to also give his titular heroine action set pieces and genuine displays of agency. Borrowing notes from the aforementioned Tom Cruise espionage series the score sets a tone of intrigue for Thelma as she evades her family and pursues her scammers. She may have slowed down but she still is more capable than society is willing to give her credit for.

This is where Thelma really differentiates itself from other elder depicting cinema. Thelma is duped, but only because the scammers use AI to duplicate her grandson’s voice and then multiple attempts to call him are unsuccessful. She’s not as sharp as she was but it is a call that would have fooled later generations as well. Her daughter (Parker Posey) and son in law (Clark Gregg) might be the most neurotic of all, treating Thelma like a child and similarly demeaning their 20-something son Danny as well. A framing that highlights the way we treat the elderly like children.

Anyone close to their grandparent in the twilight years will recognize the kindness and also cringe at the unfair treatment of a clearly still capable woman. Squibb is extremely game for all the action and comedy in her long overdue first lead role. It’s a funny film, even if the plotting can fall into both the tropes of thrillers and films about older folks. No matter how much space Thelma is given to subvert expectations and mourn for the life that has drifted away from her, the film still falls into the comfortable and safe trappings of a Sundance thriller. 7/10