Just Getting Started

The film is ingratiating enough, but its main value is to make us eager for another, more substantial Shelton movie long before another decade has slipped by.

What it doesn’t have, in any abundance, is laughs. “Started” plays like a Ron Shelton comedy for people too old to enjoy Ron Shelton comedies.

Even a cast with this many award wins and nominations can't salvage a script that will have viewers audibly sighing, rather than laughing.

This film is a total dud and an insult to the intelligence of anyone who would see it — especially the seniors who clearly are the movie’s target audience. “Just Getting Started” simply never does get started. It’s D.O.A.

There is both too much plot in Just Getting Started and too little.

Abysmal, unfunny, and ultimately, completely unnecessary.

Some bad movies trigger swells of anger and outrage, while others prompt industrial-grade snark and scorn. And then there are leaden clunkers like Just Getting Started that provoke an ineffable sense of sadness as one considers how much time, money and talent has been squandered on something so thoroughly useless.

This movie felt like it was mission core elements the whole time. The actors's performances, despite being all very renown actors was not as great as expected, in fact the emotions and jokes where pretty dull as well. It's just another ordinary average performance because of the script writing and movie directing style affected their roles. I would say a lousy writing and script is what leads to these great actors not performing well. The was there but sadly it was a disaster as it was to serious in that aspect and sarcastic and hard to get sometimes. The sounds where great but the complete lack of music in certain scenes did not help the movie overall. It was a rushed plot-less movie which would have done a lot better if it where a TV short, because the plot was lacking a lot of content to the base. Overall this is a flawed movie down to the core and it is very disappointing even despite having some elements as entertainment and fun handled well. It is an average movie which could have been a lot better if not for lack of sheer content.

A Christmas comedy for those of retirement age. As odd as it's holiday setting is, it does a decent job of showing those who are entering the final chapter of their lives having some fun. The plot centers around the rivalry between Morgan Freeman and Tommy Lee Jones and the former's mysterious past that eventually leads to them becoming friends. The humor is rather uneven and the pacing is quite slow. The whole thing is really just a series of competitions between the two leads broken up by awkward bits of unsuccessful flirting with Rene Russo's character before the more action-oriented (and absurd) final act. The duo's battle for popularity and female attention is largely carried by Freeman. It's nice to see the actor being able to cut loose like this. Even in other movies like Last Vegas where the main idea is to watch everyone cut up, Freeman has always played one of the more restrained and mature characters onscreen. Here he's just a total playboy. Jones is decent as the straight man. His over-serious nature and constant grim stare make his one-liners more amusing than they otherwise would have been. A shame these two great and respectable leads weren't given better material. For those just entering or already partaking in their later years, Just Getting Started will likely prove to be a good time. It's a middle-of-the-road comedy that wants to show that getting old doesn't necessarily mean that the good times are at an end. As the movie says, "Happiness is not a condition. It's a choice." Still, the choice might be somewhat out of people's hands when it comes to watching this one. Particularly in the case of more youthful viewers. The material is quite weak and no amount of pandering to a specific audience can cover it up. Plus there's how it comes off as more of a TV movie than something that made it's way into theaters. Overall, there is an audience for this film. Unfortunately I can't count myself among them, but maybe those who have gotten on up in the years can.

This is a really bad movie. Even Morgan Freeman and Tommy Lee Jones can’t save this mess. It is stupid in a bad way. Not funny at all. I did not laugh even one time. The women in the movie are merely sex objexts (if you can call women of a certain age sex objects). The plot, such as it is, is soooo thn it is barely there. This movie did not entertain us and I really would recommend you save your money.

Sometimes you need to grow old with grace and dignity and while I could feel bad for the waste of such good actors I don't because they accepted the job for the paycheck. This comedy is terrible.

Starring Morgan Freeman, Tommy Lee Jones with Rene Russo, Jane Seymour, Elizabeth Ashley and an appearance by Johnny Mathis with a script by and directed by Ron Shelton of “Bull Durham”, “Tin Cup” and “White Men Can’t Jump” how can a movie be this bad? The fact that it wasn’t pre-screened for critics, opening cold Friday was sort of a hint that it wasn’t good and it isn’t. There is about one minute with a limbo contest between Freeman and Jones that may give you a hint of a smile but that is it! Freeman fares the best but that is strictly due to his persona. I seldom, if ever, negative about performers looks but I have to make a few general comments here. Both Freeman and Jones are aging fine up to this point but of the women I wish Elizabeth Ashley hadn’t appeared on the screen as I once thought this woman was beautiful but, to me, that’s not true anymore. I didn’t, gratefully, recognize Jane Seymour during the movie and had to check the credits out to see what part she played. I am not just picking on the women as I am still shaking my head over my ‘idol’, for many reasons, Johnny Mathis! We are both the same age but he looks 20 years older than he should plus the two songs he sang didn’t sound like the Mathis I know. Sometimes a movie is so bad it becomes a cult film but this is so bad it should just disappear and never be shown again!