Ann Devereaux, a Southern belle of a certain age, is married to Dan Devereaux, a philandering band leader. They have two sons, George and Robbie. While living large in the Manhattan of 1953, Ann is shocked when she returns home one day only to find her man in bed with another woman. Her revenge follows in getting all the money from her husband's and hitting the road in search of her long lost loves.
There are stops in Boston, where she meets with Wallace McAllister, a man that wants her money instead. Meeting Col. Harlan Williams, appears to fit her aspirations, only to find out this man is a disciplinarian who does not take kindly to her children. The next stop is Pittsburgh where a former beau has something else in mind.
With no prospects of ever making money, Ann and the boys land in St. Louis where her sister Hope lives. Ann goes through some horrible jobs until she is hired for a store that uses her personal taste to make unprecedented sales. The owner of the chain Gill Massey, likes Ann at first sight. He proposes marriage, something that makes her happy. The trouble is Bill Massey is already married and has married a few other women. The real wife of Massey offers Ann a cash settlement to compensate for her embarrassment.
George does not want to move to California with the rest. He has found a nice environment in St. Louis and stays with his aunt. That only lasts until Robbie calls him after they were robbed of all the money they possessed. George goes to the rescue immediately, deciding to stay with Ann and Robbie. The next stop is Los Angeles and the trio land jobs as extras in Hollywood. Ann pushes Robbie to be an actor, bur it is George the one that makes it, after all. At the end in his narration he informs the audience he got a contract in the movies as an actor and decided to change his name to Hamilton, like in George Hamilton, whose life the film is loosely based.
The film, directed by Richard Loncraine, is mildly amusing. It is basically a road film in which the characters get to experience quite a lot. Ann is the eternal optimist, even in her worst moments. Her motto is that things have a way to turn for the best. She was a resourceful lady who is modeled after the real mother of actor George Hamilton. The film takes a nostalgic look at the way we lived in that era, where things were less complicated in the country.
Renee Zelweger plays Ann with all her tics and mannerisms that are her trade mark. Logan Lerman is the real star of the film because he is a much original character. The supporting cast is not too shabby, any film with Kevin Bacon cannot be all that bad. Chris Noth, Steven Weber, Robin Weigert, Mark Rendall and the excellent David Koechner have good moments in the film.
There are stops in Boston, where she meets with Wallace McAllister, a man that wants her money instead. Meeting Col. Harlan Williams, appears to fit her aspirations, only to find out this man is a disciplinarian who does not take kindly to her children. The next stop is Pittsburgh where a former beau has something else in mind.
With no prospects of ever making money, Ann and the boys land in St. Louis where her sister Hope lives. Ann goes through some horrible jobs until she is hired for a store that uses her personal taste to make unprecedented sales. The owner of the chain Gill Massey, likes Ann at first sight. He proposes marriage, something that makes her happy. The trouble is Bill Massey is already married and has married a few other women. The real wife of Massey offers Ann a cash settlement to compensate for her embarrassment.
George does not want to move to California with the rest. He has found a nice environment in St. Louis and stays with his aunt. That only lasts until Robbie calls him after they were robbed of all the money they possessed. George goes to the rescue immediately, deciding to stay with Ann and Robbie. The next stop is Los Angeles and the trio land jobs as extras in Hollywood. Ann pushes Robbie to be an actor, bur it is George the one that makes it, after all. At the end in his narration he informs the audience he got a contract in the movies as an actor and decided to change his name to Hamilton, like in George Hamilton, whose life the film is loosely based.
The film, directed by Richard Loncraine, is mildly amusing. It is basically a road film in which the characters get to experience quite a lot. Ann is the eternal optimist, even in her worst moments. Her motto is that things have a way to turn for the best. She was a resourceful lady who is modeled after the real mother of actor George Hamilton. The film takes a nostalgic look at the way we lived in that era, where things were less complicated in the country.
Renee Zelweger plays Ann with all her tics and mannerisms that are her trade mark. Logan Lerman is the real star of the film because he is a much original character. The supporting cast is not too shabby, any film with Kevin Bacon cannot be all that bad. Chris Noth, Steven Weber, Robin Weigert, Mark Rendall and the excellent David Koechner have good moments in the film.