Directed by: Zara Hayes
Runtime: 91 minutes
Do you feel like having an existential crisis about your own mortality and the inevitable aging of your body as you slowly creep closer to death? A young-at-heart 28-year-old is probably not the target demographic for this film about a retirement community where the elderly can go to die, yet I still found myself sympathising with the main characters as they search for meaning and purpose in their final years on this earth. At an age where the rest of my life is still very much ahead of me (though I already feel like a wilting flower in the sun), this film can still make you take stock of your own life. Whether it is seen as clinging desperately to the past and better days, or embracing the things in life that make you happy, Poms has a lovely message at its heart undermined by a few poor characters choices and lack of climactic payoff.
The characters in this film are its weakest area, with many sitting awkwardly as cartoonish stereotypes or slutty clichés. The younger characters (thank god there were only two) seem to have been written by some ‘hip dude’ who’s ‘down with the kids’. You all know the kind, right? That lame principal that says “No, it’s the children who are wrong” or that mid 30s inspirational speaker who comes to your school and tells you which social media platforms are ‘hip’. The film’s teen characters are incredibly superficial, with choices that make very little sense for a high-hormone sexed-up teenager. The female teen character has a lovely demeanour and a necessary plotline, but her personality backflip (cheerleading pun intended) doesn’t seem to follow what usual high school peer-pressure would dictate. One of the Poms dancers also has a middle-aged son who is so contrived and over-the-top that he almost seems created for moments for the women to show their power and worth, making those moments feel a little manufactured as well.
However, Diane Keaton and Jacki Weaver’s Martha and Sheryl have wonderful chemistry and a great friendship throughout the film. Weaver’s Sheryl is sometimes demoted to playing to role of the token ‘slutty friend’, but the soulful and caring parts of her character shine far brighter than the former. When she appeared on screen for the first time, I couldn’t help but like her the minute she started to smile, which helped me understand how an introverted and crotchety Martha could become friends with sunny and optimistic Sheryl. Martha is a difficult character to sympathise with initially, but she seems to be intentionally written in such a way that it takes until the pom poms are out of their box to fully support and love her. The conclusion of the film is a little disappointing, since the dance routine just can’t really hold a candle to Bring It On, but the heartwarming message at its core and the pursuit of simply living life resonated with me at the end.
Poms overall achieves what it aims to do in making a film about embracing the final days of your life and pursuing what makes you happy. The jokes and lighter moments of the film seemed to be enjoyed by the 50-year-old cinema audience I saw this film with, and Martha’s journey from quiet hermit to cheerleading sensation is heart-warming and worth some of the more stilted dialogue. Sometimes the humour does verge on demeaning the older female characters, but overall I loved the representation of real women with real bodies and personalities. A film that is far from perfect for me, the positive storyline and chemistry between characters in Poms far outweighs the negatives. I am now going to go and plan my retirement group “Marvel Cinematic nerds” to make sure I stay active and embrace what makes me happy. Perhaps an existential crisis at 28 is good for the soul?
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